Launching emergency response to reach survivors of Super Typhoon Haiyan | Mercy CorpsLaunching emergency response to reach survivors of Super Typhoon Haiyan | Mercy Corps



















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Launching emergency response to reach survivors of Super Typhoon Haiyan
Philippines, November 10, 2013

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      Children walk through vehicles and debris strewn across a river after Super Typhoon Haiyan battered Tacloban city in central Philippines. Photo: Reuters/Erik De Castro, courtesy Trust.org          






With the devastating impact of Super Typhoon Haiyan clearer, Mercy Corps is deploying seasoned emergency responders to the Philippines. We’ll be working with partners on the ground to meet immediate humanitarian needs.
“Based on our initial conversations with the United Nations and other colleagues on the ground, we anticipate the most pressing needs to be clean water, sanitation, temporary shelter and food,” said Michael Bowers, our senior director of strategic response and global emergencies.
Government officials estimate that as many as 10,000 people were killed in Leyte province, in the hardest-hit Eastern Visayas Islands. More than 9 million people have been affected by the storm — known locally as Typhoon Yolanda — across nine regions of the country.
"My whole life, there's never been a storm like this that devastated Iloilo this much and this quick," one woman told a Mercy Corps staffer about her hometown in the Visayas. "We are not new to big storms and every year we get 20 or so, and every year they cause some damage, but in my 53 years, Iloilo has never been hit this bad."
Access to more isolated areas remains a challenge, as most roads are flooded or clogged with debris and communications are spotty. Coordinating the logistics to deliver lifesaving supplies is a top priority.
The first Mercy Corps team will be assessing needs and identifying partners to start delivering aid. We will expand the team in the coming days as relief and recovery efforts ramp up.
You can support our relief efforts for Typhoon survivors. Donate now ▸
“Mercy Corps has years of experience helping low-income communities in the Philippines. We know that the storm has devastated some of the country’s most vulnerable people," Bowers explained. 
Mercy Corps has responded to almost every major disaster in the last 20 years, including the Indian Ocean tsunami, Haiti earthquake, Japan tsunami and the hunger crisis in the Horn of Africa.
“Our experience in these situations is that while we’re working to meet immediate humanitarian needs, it’s critical we look immediately for ways to start the recovery and reconstruction process," Bowers added. "Coming out of the immediate crisis, our goal is to help people return to their homes, get businesses running again and kids back to school as quickly as possible.”

How you can help

You can help families survive and begin rebuilding in the wake of this disaster and other crises around the world. Donate to our Humanitarian Response Fund ▸

You can also spread the word and ask your community to send help to the Philippines. Start an online fundraising campaign to help Typhoon Haiyan survivors ▸
 




Comments





 

Submitted by Butch Dela Cruz on Sun, 11/10/2013 - 7:20pm Permalink 




Volunteering 
 
reply






 

Submitted by Jason Franklin on Mon, 11/11/2013 - 3:40am Permalink 




Volunteer available 
 
reply






 

Submitted by Alexis  on Mon, 11/11/2013 - 1:01pm Permalink 




Volunteering 
 
reply






 

Submitted by Martha Adams Lyimo on Mon, 11/11/2013 - 11:10pm Permalink 




Voluntering 
 
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Submitted by Harold Bunda on Tue, 11/12/2013 - 9:20am Permalink 




Volunteering, Nurse 
 
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Submitted by Peggy A Cramer on Wed, 11/13/2013 - 4:57pm Permalink 




typhoon Haiyan 
 
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Submitted by Stephanie Loftis on Tue, 11/12/2013 - 5:05pm Permalink 




Volunteer with Mercy Corps 
 
reply






 

Submitted by James Varney on Wed, 11/13/2013 - 1:45pm Permalink 




Volunteers are available and organized in the Visaya Islands 
 
reply






 

Submitted by R32nicoGTR on Wed, 11/13/2013 - 8:41pm Permalink 




Relief workers 
 
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Submitted by Robert Taylor on Thu, 11/14/2013 - 6:14am Permalink 




Volunteer 
 
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Submitted by Stephanie Loftis on Mon, 11/18/2013 - 1:46pm Permalink 




Volunteering in the Philippines. 
 
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Submitted by Marinelle Tangpuz on Thu, 11/21/2013 - 1:55am Permalink 




I am a nurse from leyte and a 
 
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Submitted by Myradele B. Bobis on Fri, 01/10/2014 - 7:37pm Permalink 




Humanitarian Aid 
 
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Submitted by Burning Bush on Sun, 01/12/2014 - 10:01pm Permalink 




Tacloban City 
 
reply

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 Filed by: Liz Hummer
Digital Content Manager


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