Disaster Response Philippines Project #49869

Emergency Response to Typhoon Goni - Philippines

Project Report | Jun 28, 2021
Final Report on Emergency Response to Typhoon Goni

By Phalaen Chang | Project Assistant

Distributing hygiene kits to impacted communities

This will be our final update as International Medical Corps’ emergency response to Typhoon Goni draws to a close.

To continue supporting International Medical Corps, please visit our “Emergency Response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19)” project to learn about our global response to the pandemic.

Learn more about our Coronavirus response here: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/emergency-response-to-the-coronavirus-2019-ncov/

On November 1, 2020, Super Typhoon Goni made landfall over the Philippines, with winds up to 195 miles per hour. For two days, violent winds, landslides and flooding ravaged the island of Luzon, causing extensive damage to health facilities, schools and essential services. In impacted regions, the storm displaced nearly 400,000 individuals.

To make matters worse, less than two weeks after Typhoon Goni, Typhoon Vamco struck the northern island of Luzon, greatly affecting the capital city of Manila. Floodwaters, mud and strong winds destroyed more than 39,000 homes and displaced more than 223,000 people. Noela, a mother of two, recalls, “On the night Typhoon Vamco struck, I noticed that the water was already knee-deep, so I placed my youngest child on top of the table as I went to collect some of our items. However, the water was rising very fast and my child was almost carried away by floodwaters. I decided to just leave the house.” She continued, “When I visited this morning, the whole roof was no longer there, and the house is full of mud.”

Following Typhoons Goni and Vamco, stories like Noela’s were common. International Medical Corps’ team in the Philippines acted quickly to support critical relief and recovery activities for those impacted.

Addressing the most urgent needs, we distributed 500 jerry cans and more than 300 household hygiene kits each containing a month’s worth of soap, cloth face masks, toothbrushes, towels and more for a family of four. To complement the distributed supplies, our team provided health and hygiene education.

The large-scale displacement and overwhelmed evacuation centers raised concerns for the rapid spread of COVID-19. Our team distributed COVID-19 kits with face masks and hand sanitizer to more than 900 families and shared messaging related to COVID-19 prevention. In anticipation of an increase in confirmed cases, International Medical Corps also provided two health facilities in the impacted area with infection prevention and control supplies such as disinfectant and other cleaning materials. These essential supplies help keep health workers and patients safe.

Across all of our response activities, International Medical Corps reached more than 9,600 men, women and children impacted by the typhoons. According to one local official, “We thank International Medical Corps, for coming to assist us in that moment when we need support for our constituents. The hygiene kits are actually needed by the people in their daily lives, so giving them that is definitely helpful and will help keep them healthy as well. International Medical Corps came and supported us without asking for anything, but just the permission to work in our community.”

International Medical Corps is grateful to GlobalGiving and its community of donors for raising awareness of our response efforts in the Philippines following Typhoon Goni.

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Mar 2, 2021
Typhoon Goni Recovery in the midst of COVID-19

By Caitlin Bartkus | Resource Development Officer

Super Typhoon Goni caused severe flooding

On November 1, 2020, Super Typhoon Goni struck the Philippines with winds up to 175 mph—the strongest since Typhoon Haiyan in 2013—leaving 125 cities and towns without electricity and displacing hundreds of thousands of people. The super typhoon left significant damage in the Bicol region and Quezon Province in Calabarzon, with approximately 2 million people affected by the storm, and more than 20 deaths. The Bicol region bore the brunt of the typhoon’s violent winds and torrential rains, blowing away roofs, toppling structures and causing severe flooding and landslides. More than 400,000 people were initially displaced from their homes, with an initial 361,000 people residing in just 2,287 crowded evacuation centers—exponentially increasing the potential for the further spread of COVID-19.

International Medical Corps continues to provide infection prevention and control materials to prevent the spread of disease, and also to provide water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) support in community and health centers for people affected by this devastating super typhoon.

Since the start of the response, our teams have reached displaced populations in the hard-hit Bicol region. We have provided hygiene kits, including soap, toothpaste, cloth face masks, face shields, and more, to impacted families. Our teams have also reached two rural health facilities with WASH supplies, including aprons, goggles, soap, and detergent, to help keep their doors open as they face the impacts of the typhoon. These supplies also helped health facilities provide training to health workers on the proper use of disinfectants.

The COVID-19 pandemic has complicated response efforts. The risk of transmission remains high, especially in typically crowded evacuation centers. The Department of Health has reminded local governments to deploy safety officers to check sanitation and monitor COVID-19 symptoms among those displaced. The main COVID-19 laboratory in the Bicol region was also damaged, prompting the suspension of testing.

To address concerns over the spread of the virus, International Medical Corps is working with community volunteers to help keep families healthy despite the impacts of the typhoon, providing them with COVID-19 prevention supplies as they provide families with support. Together our community volunteers help identify those most in need, such as populations displaced from their homes due to the typhoon, as well as help ensure individuals wear masks, practice social distancing, and properly use soap or sanitizer.

As International Medical Corps’ typhoon recovery efforts continue in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we thank the GlobalGiving community of donors for their support.

Hygiene kit distribution for impacted communities

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