More than a week after Typhoon Fengshen ravaged a huge part of the Philippine archipelago causing shortages of safe drinking water and disrupting food supplies, the terrible experience, for many survivors, remains quite vivid.
"It's like all of that occurred only this morning -- the howling wind and sheets of rain, the rampaging waters that swept people, trees, cars and entire houses away – it’s all still fresh in my mind," recalls Melecio Beso, whose house in the village of Bakaw in Mandurriao District, was destroyed at the height of the storm.
For those who gathered temporarily at the Jaro district Red Cross evacuation centre in Iloilo, the storm brought devastation. "We survived with our lives but little else."
The storm resulted in huge losses in agriculture and infrastructure. Rivers altered their course, and safe drinking water emerged as a critical issues for thousands of survivors.
On 18 June, Typhoon Fengshen (locally named Frank) tore an erratic zigzag course through the central Philippines, bringing death and destruction to 37 provinces.
At least 329 people died from flooding and landslides. Another 435 people remain missing and more than 100,000 homes were destroyed or badly damaged. Considered as the Philippines' worst typhoon this year, Fengshen went on to batter the southern Chinese coastal areas.
Even as the storm approached, the Philippine National Red Cross quickly dispatched Emergency Response Units (ERUs) to the field.
Benjo Bacani was one of those sent to the coastal areas in support of the sea search and rescue operation.
Bacani is a nurse and a certified emergency medical technician (EMT) instructor for the Red Cross. He has also received training to set up and operate portable water supply systems following emergencies.
"It helps in the Red Cross to be a person with well-rounded training," says Bacani. "In many disaster scenarios, you often end-up in the field, arriving early and having to carry out multiple roles."
For Red Cross team member Lou-Jean "Troy" Varona, despite having his own home severely damaged by Fengshen, there was a single overriding concern: To join the Red Cross relief effort as soon as possible.
There was no time to pause for reflection or feel sad. "We were, and are still, working to ease the plight of our neighbours during their time of need,” says Troy.
“Carrying a child into the sanctuary of an evacuation centre was enough, for me, to erase my own thirst or hunger."
At the Jaro evacuation site a few days after the disaster, Troy was joined by another volunteer, Joseph Cabelin, to help set up a mobile water purifying system for the 235 families staying there.
Once the system was up and running, children with plastic bottles and jugs were the first to run to the tap stands.
Troy and Joseph took turns making records of the water drawn from the system and organizing the queue of beneficiaries who, after nine days, were getting their first taste of freshly purified water.
"Water is life," says Benjo Bacani, a water and sanitation technician for the Red Cross. "We have to ensure that the water we supply is safe. Otherwise, we end up compounding the health risks.
"One unintended contamination could trigger gastroenteritis that may sweep through the entire community of evacuees, especially the very vulnerable children and women. That's why we check the quality of our water carefully," he adds.
As Bacani neatly put away his tools, he shared that the smiles on the faces of the beneficiaries carrying their containers of clear, safe water, made the difficult afternoon worth all the sweat.
For him, it was just another day at work alleviating human suffering. He knows that more will follow and he is ready to support the Red Cross and Red Crescent community.
The International Federation of Red Cross And Red Crescent Societies has issued a Preliminary Emergency Appeal of CHF 8,310,213 (USD 8 million or EUR 5.1 million) in cash, kind, or services to help the Philippine National Red Cross assist some 6,000 families for 12 months. The money is needed for providing clean water, food, emergency shelters, and other relief items.
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Philippine National Red Cross water and sanitation technicians Raymond Bantigue (left) and Benjo Bacani test water samples from a newly set up mobile purification system to ensure safe water supply at a typhoon Fengshen evacuation camp in the province of Iloilo, Philippines. (p17865) (Albert Lee/Philippine Red Cross)
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| Philippine National Red Cross volunteers Troy Varona (left) and Joseph Cabelin assist children from a typhoon Fengshen evacuation shelter in Jaro district, province of Iloilo, Philippines in drawing water from a portable water purification system. The storm caused thousands of families to lose their homes and led to water and food shortages. (p17864) (Albert Lee/Philippine Red Cross) |
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| Philippine National Red Cross volunteers Troy Varona (left) and Joseph Cabelin assist beneficiaries from a typhoon Fengshen evacuation shelter in Jaro district, province of Iloilo, Philippines in drawing water from a portable water purification system. The storm caused thousands of families to lose their homes and led to water and food shortages. (Albert Lee/Philippine Red Cross) |
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Philippine National Red Cross water and sanitation technicians Benjo Bacani (left) and Raymond Bantigue prepare to lay down a supply bladder as part of a mobile purification system to provide safe water for 235 families at a typhoon Fengshen evacuation camp in the province of Iloilo, Philippines. (Albert Lee/Philippine Red Cross) (p17866)
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