NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) — More than 1,000 people are dead and hundreds of thousands struggling in the aftermath of a typhoon that slammed the southern Philippines Dec. 17. Southern Baptists are mounting a relief effort through Baptist Global Response and local partners in the Philippines.
“Typhoon Washi brought heavy rains, strong winds and a large number of flash floods to the area,” said Pat Melancon, BGR’s managing director of disaster response and training. “The government has reported around 10,000 homes damaged or destroyed and estimates are that 335,000 people have been affected.”
Baptist Global Response is working with local partners in the affected areas and funds have been released to begin an immediate rapid response to assist the survivors in the area, Melancon said. The funds will be used primarily to meet immediate needs such as food assistance, temporary shelters, and water and sanitation needs. The initial rapid response also will include assessment of longer-term response needs in the area.
“Storms regularly occur in the Philippines,” Melancon noted. “However, Typhoon Washi struck the southern part of the country, where these types of tropical storms are not as frequent and people are not as prepared to deal with them. BGR has worked in the past with flooding situations in the Philippines and continues to partner in providing assistance in this event as well.”
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Reported by Baptist Global Response, on the Internet at www.gobgr.org.
