MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Red Cross on Sunday appealed for help as it reported that the death toll from the flash floods that struck eight areas in the Mindanao and the Visayas has reached 497.
PRC Secretary General Gwendolyn Pang appealed for help from Red Cross’ corporate partners so they could provide more family Christmas packs for the affected residents. Each pack should include priority needs such as food, clothing, sleeping materials, blankets and school supplies and footwear for the children.
Nearly 500 staff members and 143 volunteers who have been deployed in the field have been assessing the situation and providing hot meals to the evacuees, she said.
Pang said the Red Cross has also set up welfare desks and first aid stations at the evacuation centers to look after the affected families.
The Red Cross said it would welcome donations in cash for its continuing relief and recovery efforts. Send your donations to PRC headquarters in Manila or to any Red Cross chapters. Red Cross hotline is 527-0000.
The PRC’s tally of fatalities listed Cagayan De Oro City with 215 dead and Iligan City with 195. Other areas with casualties were Bukidnon, 47; Compostela Valley five; Zamboanga Del Norte, three; Lanao del Norte, nine; Surigao Del Sur, one; and Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental, 22.
The Red Cross also reported earlier that 202 were injured and 162 others were missing due to the typhoon. One-hundred one of those injured came from Cagayan de Oro while Iligan and Zamboanga del Norte had 64 and 37 respectively.
At least 147 residents in Cagayan de Oro remained missing and another 15 in Iligan City.
PRC data showed that 20 towns and cities reported loss of life and damage to property due to floods and landslides. A total of 75 villages were affected, including 18 in Compostela Valley; 17 each in Cagayan de Oro and Zamboanga del Norte; 15 in Iligan; and eight in Dumaguete.
Overall, the storm has so far affected 5,844 families, or 20,433 individuals.
Many have been housed in 23 evacuation centers set up in affected areas, said the Red Cross.
PRC chairman Richard Gordon and his team will be leaving for Mindanao on Monday to personally assess the situation in the affected areas.
Gordon expressed Red Cross’ concern over the plight of the thousands of families whose lives were shattered, especially in this Christmas season.
“Mindanao is not usually a typhoon-prone area and residents were caught unprepared, mostly shocked by the flashfloods that swept away their belongings and source of livelihood such as crops and live stocks,” he said.
Gordon added that even if the flood waters have subsided, many families have remained at evacuation centers to sleep at night, while cleaning their houses of the thick mud during the day.
Pang urged concerned local government units in the area to always be prepared for disasters by educating and training the people on how to handle disaster situations.
“Preparedness and disaster risk reduction are very important to prevent unnecessary loss of lives and resources. We must work together and continue to educate the various communities,” she said.
“The best way to prepare is educate people about the effects of the changing climate in their own language. And to communicate that they can help reduce the risk of disaster and hazards. Community people should be empowered with knowledge and information as well as training,” she added.
Her reminder came amid local reports that the concerned local disaster councils were not convened prior to the typhoon’s arrival with local officials being quoted as saying storms did not usually pass their way.