Disaster Response Philippines Project #44625

Aid to Refugees of Storms, Floods, and Violence

by Asia America Initiative

Project Report | Oct 14, 2022
Relief Trucks Deliver Aid to Remote Philippine Provinces

By Albert Santoli | Project Leader

Dear Friends,

In September 2022, Typhoon Talas damaged areas north of Manila. It was followed by massive winds on October 1, as Super Typhoon Karding cut a destructive swath through the same areas and others moving west. The intensity of the storm was unexpected and devastating. Both storms left behind communities in ruin, with thousands of families homeless and destroyed rice fields setting the stage for food shortages in coming months.

Asia America Initiative, One World Institute, and hundreds of local volunteers -- including many off-duty police officers -- rode into the pummeled storm areas on donated or rented trucks filled with food, water, hygiene materials, and bedding supplies. Because the two storms were closely sequenced. AAI and our partners were already coordinating relief materials into areas previously damaged from earlier storms in Luzon and Visayas regions. We were able to immediately increase support and carry relief supplies to areas where few other organizations had a presence. The support of GlobalGiving donors to this project was critical to our rapid and effective response.

Every year, thousands of families in the Philippines are displaced by volcanoes, typhoons, fires, and floods. Asia America Initiative and our partners are providing emergency food, water, tarp shelters, blankets, hygiene, face masks, and basic health care items for displaced families and first responders.

Dr. Yolanda, who worked around the clock organizing the various teams to meet the needs of hard-hit areas, says: "We made an immediate impact and did save lives. However, in mid-October fresh food, clean water, and shelter materials are still in short supply. Many roads and buildings are flood damaged. Families and especially the elderly must sleep on the cold wet ground where they develop many physical and internal illnesses."

Asia America Initiative is working with local leaders, community organizations, police, and firefighters to deliver urgently needed goods and services to at least 1,000 families who cannot return to their homes. Monsoon season has not reached its mid-point yet. However, many more typhoons and cyclones are expected in many areas of the Philippines, and other parts of Asia.

If you would like to add to your support, please click on the link below. We are accepting donations to send tons of supplies to AAI-supported communities in the weeks to come.

Thank you for helping families who have become refugees.

Aid to Refugees of Taal Volcano, Floods, COVID-19

Thank you,

Albert Santoli

Director Asia America Initiative

Links:

Asia America Initiative website

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Jun 12, 2022
Aid to "Ring of Fire" natural disaster refugees

By Albert Santoli | Project Leader

Since January 2020, thousands of families in the Philippines have been displaced by inrcease in local and regional volcano activity which has created non-stop rain patterns and dangerous air pollution in the Southeast Asian "Ring of Fire." In addition to the Taal and Bulusan volcanoes, numerous eruptions have occurred in neighboring Indonesia. These natural disasers have created tropical storms, fires, and floods,with relief efforts complicated by Covid-19 pandemic infections. Asia America Initiative and our partners are providing emergency food, water, tarp shelters, blankets, hygiene, face masks, and basic health care items for more than 2,000 displaced families and first-responders. We have provided 4 tons of relief supplies. Our GlobalGiving partners' donations have assisted AAI to continue our interventions in affected communities to provide aid to the homeless.

In March 2022, the Taal volcano erupted once again. And in June 2022, the Bulusan Volcano began erupting, also near the capital region of Luzon island in the Philippines. Explosive lava activity continues. On June 10, the Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) Tokyo warned about a volcanic ash plume that rose up to estimated 17000 ft (5200 m) altitude, with a large cloud of ash moving in a westerly direction. In fact, since January 2020, the Taal Volcano erupted affecting over 502,500 people. The Philippine government estimated 73,000 school-age children were displaced among 146,992 persons in temporary shelters in 489 evacuation centers. Fresh food, clean water, and shelter materials are still in short supply. The volcanic ash high in earth's altitude has created unusual year-long heavy rain and flooding, especially in the Capiz, Visayas and Jolo, Mindanao areas where numerous AAI "peace through development" programs are based. Many roads are flood damaged. Worse, many other areas are affected by the COVID-19 virus with little to no hygiene or adequate medical supplies to protect aid workers.

Asia America Initiative is working with local leaders, community organizations, school teachers, police, and firefighters to deliver urgently needed goods and services to families who cannot return to their homes. We have already delivered four tons of food, blankets, and hygiene supplies. We are also preparing to send support for an additional 2,000 families (or 10,000 adults and children) who are homeless in especially hard-to-reach areas in Visayas and Mindanao regions.

Because many volcanoes are active across the Pacific Ocean Ring of Fire, Asia America Initiative is committed to long-term humanitarian relief to at least 5,000 displaced families. We are sending face masks and sterile gloves to firefighters and professional health workers. Relief supplies from the US, including food and hygiene items, will be sent to the Philippines to be distributed to refugees in shelters and health centers. Donations help us to acquire emergency supplies to send to affected communities.

Links:

web site

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Feb 16, 2022
Volunteers break cultural barriers to provide aid to flood victims

By Albert Santoli | Project Leader

In December 2021, massive Super Typhoon Rai/ Odette, battered the central islands of the Philippines with thousands of houses destroyed, more than 380,000 families were displaced amounting to more than 1,500,000 people. During Christmas week, Asia America Initiative and partner organizations began delivering relief supplies in areas outside of Cebu City. We targeted communities who lacked assistance from international and national organizations. Mobilizing convoys of trucks and jeeps filled with good, water, blankets and hygiene supplies were hampered by destroyed roads and bridges. Making matters more difficult, a rapidly-spreading Covid-19 outbreak threatened flood vicims and relief workers.

We are happy to report that thanks to the generous logistics support of IPI Corporation, which has headquarters in Cebu, we were able to transport our volunteers led Ms. Lourdes who have been able to provide life-saving aid to more than 50,000 people in the Cebu and Bohol island areas. Among the ruins of uprooted trees, downed power lines and the debris of flattened wooden houses, AAI and IPI teams set up distribution stations along the roads near villages where lines of family heads and the elderly patiently waited for the sacks of food, bottles of water and hygiene supplies. "We did not expect such generosity," said Mrs. Octavio, in Site 8 of Banhigan Badian village in Cebu Province. " Our home was smashed by high winds in the storm and our farm fields are now barren. We did not know if anyone realized that we are alive and need the most basic items for survival." A more difficult area to reach was the Surigao area in the remote northeastern coastal area of the Philippines' Mindanao region. Our volunteers, who originated largely from Zamboanga in the very southern-most area of Mindanao were organized by Dr. Yolanda woprking out of her home in California. We began a second aid convoy immediately after the New Year, with support from rice merchants and fish processing centers in Zamboanga and agricultural cooperatives in the Davao area.

Our "caravan" of vehicles is delivering much-needed relief to the hardest hit, most difficult areas. The group traveled from Zamboanga across treacherous mountain roads to the province of Surigao del Norte. Our outreach area is the Caraga Region, where 500,000 inhabitants include at least 20 percent tribal peoples who usually remain isolated from the outside world. In addition, armed rebel groups roam the area in violent bands of the New People's Army. In addition, a sizable number of our volunteers are Muslims who have brotherly relations with their Christian first-response colleagues, but are feared by the Christian Filipinos and tribal peoples in Caraga.

Asia America Initiative has found that the best way to overcome biases and fear is to have everyone working together in performing acts of kindness. The Relief Aid caravan is supported by local leaders, community organizations, police, and firefighters to deliver urgently needed goods and services to families of all religions and ethnic groups who cannot return to their homes. A local mayor told us, "This is the first time locally that Filipinos from all ethnic and religious groups are rising above their cultural and language barriers because the enthusiasm caused by the relief caravan is contagious."

Our growing coalition of volunteers from all walks of life helped to make the ongoing relief caravan a humble but vital success. Today, Asia America Initiative and our partners continue to provide emergency food, water, tarp shelters, blankets, hygiene, face masks, and basic health care items for families. Due to destroyed farm fields and rising prices of all food items we intend to continue our aid deliveries through 2022. We are very grateful for your support.

We have already delivered relief to close to 80,000 people. We are currently preparing a second caravan to carry supplies into the most remote areas that are being forgotten or are severely under-served, especially in hard-to-reach areas of Visayas and Mindanao. We are grateful to all of our GlobalGiving donors. We could not do this without you!

Links:

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