Caritas Australia has this week reported that the response to the clean-up following the destruction caused by Typhoon Hagupit is well under way.
Wind gusts exceeded 250km an hour and storm surges were larger than a single-storey house, pounding the east coast of the Philippines on Sunday morning.
More than one million people were pre-emptively evacuated to safer ground from across six regions in the storm’s path.
Caritas Australia’s Head of Emergencies, Melville Fernandez, said planning, disaster preparedness and community-training efforts implemented following last year’s Typhoon Haiyan has meant fewer fatalities, but major structural damage is being reported in some of the harder-hit areas.
“Caritas Australia’s partners had already pre-positioned stockpiles of food and emergency supplies to cope with such a disaster,” Mr Fernandez said.
Caritas Australia had already provided contingency funding to partners based within the communities.
In a country which is approximately 80 per cent Catholic, the outreach of the Church and its social infrastructure allowed hundreds of thousands to take refuge from the storm.
In the Archdiocese of Palo (Leyte) alone, more than 10,000 people are receiving temporary shelter.
“Staff are undertaking rapid assessments and will continue to monitor the impact of the typhoon,” Mr Fernandez said.
“Given the unique and unparalleled outreach of our partners, the Caritas network is well-placed to respond in both urban and remote areas.
“Sadly, this latest disaster comes just one year after Super Typhoon Haiyan and has brought yet more fear and trauma to those very same communities.”
Mr Fernandez said with this slow-moving typhoon, torrential rain could trigger landslides and flooding across the country.
Jo Ignancio, Emergency Coordinator for Caritas Philippines, said it was unknown what the storm would bring, or what damage would be left behind.
“People were frightened and anxious, but Hagupit coming so soon after Typhoon Haiyan hasn’t defeated us.”
“Filipinos have a deep sense of supporting each other and taking care of vulnerable people. Our aim is to survive. We have great faith. Hope for us has a capital H.”
Caritas Australia and local partners are actively monitoring the situation as Typhoon Hagupit continues its devastating course.
Help Caritas Australia to respond to this emergency by donating to the Typhoon Hagupit Appeal online at www.caritas.org.au/donate or by calling 1800 024 413.