For millions of people in South East Asia the past two months have been a living nightmare. Typhoons Ketsana and Parma devastated vast areas of Vietnam and the Philippines, and Indonesia has been rocked by earthquakes.

Only a few days ago, another typhoon, Mirinae struck the region leaving 7 people dead and destroying 2,000 homes in the Philippines alone. And although relief and aid are being distributed, the road to recovery will be long.

When reading about such disasters, it is sometimes hard to picture the situation, the emotions and reactions of the people involved. What would I do if my house was flooded, if I lost my business or even worse, a relative or a loved one?

The best way to understand the effects of these destructive events is by hearing what it’s like for those who have lived through them. Here are just a few incredible stories of hope and survival from the people we have encountered and assisted in recent months.

Le, 59, Vietnam

Le is a widow and lives alone. Typhoon Ketsana completely destroyed her house.

She has been fortunate to receive relief support from local authorities and individuals, including 500,000 VND (US$27USD). Her real dream though is to rebuild her home. For three weeks, Le has spent hours every day diligently collecting the left over bricks of her collapsed home. She says, “If I had enough money, I would rebuild my house and buy a cow.”

(more…)

In a time of hardship throughout South East Asia, HelpAge’s partner, the Vietnamese Women’s Union (VWU) have shown their incredible solidarity to all those affected by the devastating floods in Vietnam. The VWU staff, who total 28,000 across the country, have generously given up an entire day’s wages each for the emergency relief effort.

HelpAge staff have reported back from Vietnam about the fantastic and tireless work the VWU have been doing - the list is endless! They have:

• joined the local authorities’ rescue team

• helped evacuate people from dangerous areas

• joined local authorities to visit sites and provide relief

• identified and supported older people in need of housing, and given cash grants of approximately US$50 for repairs

• raised emergency funds from VWU staff donations of 1 week’s pay from each staff member

• distributed aid including food, clothes, medicine and water-purifying pills.

This list is extensive, but more still needs to be done to support local organisations’ emergency repsonses.

To read more about HelpAge’s relief effort.

To donate to the DEC appeal.

HelpAge’s rapid assessment report from Indonesia reveals the true gravity of the situation and the devastation caused by the earthquake which hit West Sumatra on 30 September.

The shocking statistics are contained in the latest provincial report from 8 October, indicating that the number of dead so far has reached 739, with a further 296 people still missing. The earthquake has reportedly destroyed 122,884 houses, of which 61,765 (50%) houses are in Padang District.

In addition, 55 schools and 231 government buildings were severely damaged. The total economic loss caused by the earthquake is estimated to be close to US$236 million, an extraordinary amount for a country so often battered by natural disasters.

HelpAge is working with partners, YEL and the Department of Social Affairs (DOSW), to provide swift and urgent provide relief and assistance to the five most affected sub-districts. The project will provide support in the form of cash transfers to 3,000 older people and their families. This amounts about 200 older people per village.

To read more about our relief effort.

However, there is much more that needs to done and recovery is likely to be slow as people struggle to cope with the loss of their homes, belongings and livelihoods. To help them get their lives back on track, we need your support.

To donate to the DEC appeal.

A statement from Ed Gerlock, the former Director of COSE (HelpAge’s partner in the Philippines) and current Advocacy Manager, reveals the unsafe conditions people are being forced to live in as a result of typhoons Ketsana and Parma.

“The government is worried about conditions in the schools and the stadium where refugees from the floods are staying. Most vulnerable, are the older people and the children. Neither schools nor the stadium were ever built to house the large number of people that now reside there and sanitation is a major concern. I have heard of outbreaks of diarrhoea, but the great fear is cholera, as we have had outbreaks in the past.

A number of people, including our own staff worry about tetanus because none of the water is clean and it is full of glass and barbed wire. Health wise, it’s a difficult time. This is in addition to the fact that the vast majority of people in the centres are poor people who, nutritionally speaking, are not in the best condition.”

To read more about our emergency response in South East Asia, click here.

To donate to the DEC appeal, click here.

CNN has reported on the very real threat of water borne disease in the Philippines, as the misery caused by typhoons Ketsana and Parma continues.

According to the article, Parma has affected more than 338,000 people, displaced 85,000 and killed at least 16. Its predecessor, Ketsana, has affected more than 3.9 million people, displaced more than 335,000 and left 295 dead. Manila has not seen rain like this for 40 years, leaving 80% of it submerged.

The present threat comes from the stagnant and infested rain water, which has been standing for 10 days. People are forced to wade through the flooded streets in bare feet or flip flops. Possessions and furniture are rotting and rubbish is blocking the city’s drainage and sewage systems. Much of Manila’s 6,700 tonnes of daily rubbish is dumped illegally on the streets and is now underwater. This is the same water in which children are playing.

Fears of water borne disease are very real and many residents are blaming the government for doing too little to help people in the clean up operation. It seems clear that although the relief effort is very much underway, the recovery of Manila will take a lot longer.

COSE, our partner in the Philippines has confirmed increased cases of water borne diseases, such as diarrhoea. There are also many cases of cuts due to wading through waters full of broken glasses, nails and broken furniture.  Also extremely worrying are the psychological issues which are inevitable as a result of loss on such a devastating scale.

To read the full story go to the CNN website.

For more information about our relief work in South East Asia and to donate to the DEC appeal, click here.

At least 164 people have been killed and 15 left missing since Typhoon Ketsana lashed central Vietnam last Tuesday. The typhoon has caused more than US$600 million in damage and has affected more than 3 million people.

A large number of these are older people, with The Vietnam Association of the Elderly (VAE) estimating that around 300,000 older people have been affected by Typhoon Ketsana.

On 4 October, six days after Typhoon Ketsana struck, Tuan, a reporter from the National Vietnam Association of the Elderly (VAE) managed to reach a small commune in Phuoc Son district, Quang Nam Province. The VAE had collected some donations locally and had set up small relief distribution points in communes affected by the typhoon. This is Tuan’s story:

(more…)

HelpAge’s Regional Director for South East Asia, Eduardo Klien, sent us this latest update on the continuing emergency situation:

Vietnam

The damage is larger than initially thought. There are large numbers of affected people (estimates of around 3 million) and huge damage to infrastructure. The typhoon affected 12 provinces. The government is responding well (half a million people were evacuated), but the need is enormous. This is the worst disaster in Vietnam in decades. Our parter, the Vietnamese Women’s Union are strong , organised… and everywhere!

Indonesia

Again, the earthquake has claimed more victims than originally estimated. The physical damage is enormous and the city of Padang looks like Berlin at the end of WW2. We are carrying out an assessment in the selected areas of Padang Pariaman and Parak Buruk, in West Sumatra this week. These are smaller towns in the vicinity of Padang. The recovery in Indonesia will be longer than in the Philippines and Vietnam. The damage and loss of life is larger, much larger there and it will take at least a year for agencies to be truly effective.

To read more about our emergency response in South East Asia, click here.

To make a donation, please click here.

This morning was the first time in so many days that it did not rain. There was a mild shower early in the morning where I was staying, but that was quickly replaced by some sunlight unsuccessfully trying to peek through curtains of thick clouds.

I’m sitting in Manila airport and looking outside, I can see thick clouds but these are not loaded with moisture yet and I think there’s no immediate threat of heavy rain. It’s very humid and warm which, in the circumstances, is not a bad thing for people.

“Everything is lost”

Mr N Hadialba was my taxi driver from the hotel to the airport. I did not ask his age. He must be around 30 but looks younger. He is married and has two children aged 4 and 7. He and his family used to live in his house with his mother in law. Their house was inundated by the flood waters.

He was able to save his wife and children but his mother in law died. He works in a hotel as a bell boy and has taken two weeks paid leave and is driving the taxi to get some daily income.

He says everything is lost. He does not have clothes for work nor any food for his children. That is why he is driving to get some money to provide for his family. He is grateful that their lives are spared and feels for his wife who is grieving the death of her mother.

(more…)

As I start to type this report, the radio is blaring out information on the current situation of Typhoon Parma. The information is that the storm is making landfall over Luzon which is the province in the north of Philippines.

There is a better preparedness this time with the local government agencies evacuating people from flood prone areas to public buildings such as schools, for shelter.

It rained most of the night in Manila but the rain was moderate. I’m staying in a hotel close to COSE office. This is on an elevated area and does not flood as much. The rain this morning is not heavy. However the information we have from the low lying areas is that some places had waist deep water.

We all are hoping and praying that the flood level will not increase otherwise this time the situation will get worse. All the garbage that is sitting outside most of the houses will float around and bring much more misery and hardship to the affected people.

(more…)

I am out in Manila in the Philippines, working with our partner COSE to bring urgently needed assistance to those affected by the devastating floods.

There is still some water on the roads but most of the houses are OK. People are busy cleaning their houses. But everything inside the houses is gone.We saw piles and piles of household items thrown outside. We were taking pictures of the piles of garbage. In some case there is 2 feet of mud inside the house. They will have to start all over again. It is going to be very hard.

Eight of the COSE staff houses were flooded up to the roof. They have also lost everything. One of them (Peng) sat on the roof of her house with her two children for seven hours before being rescued. They are emotionally devastated, yet are going out with the team for distribution. They also need support to rebuild.

To read more about the relief effort, click here.

To read more testimonials, go to our emergencies blog.