Devastation in the Philippines

[LoopaDaLoopa]

Whole cities still not yet accounted for. :( Estimated 10,000 dead on the island of Leyte alone, according to some sources.

I have close friends who are missing their entire families. :( Why is this not being discussed on MN, or have I missed it?

Give cash to recognised charities you know are operating in the area (I have donated to Oxfam, but MSF, Unicef etc are all on the ground already), not material goods.

10 worst things to donate after a disaster

Sorry yes - definitely donate money if you can now. We can't get material goods out to people yet so the money will be used to fund mass movement of water and basic food stuffs as well as the clear up operation to open pathways of transportation and communication.

If you have material goods you would like to donate please hold onto them until agencies are ready to send them. Thank-you.

Sparks the human spirit is amazing

good article, exexpat

monetary donations to an aid agency is the best way to help

I've just seen a piece on the BBC about Shelterbox, which looks like a very competent organisation.

They, like all others, are facing the "last miles" difficulties (no roads, no petrol) in getting this type of aid to families.

There will be (somewhere) a (hopefully tiny) committee co-ordinating the aid efforts to avoid duplication. Any charity you have heard of will cooperate in that.

Oh, and the Pope had included this in his addresses, and urged Catholics worldwide to donate. CAFOD has an appeal running.

Yeb Sano in Warsaw - yesterday: "To anyone who continues to deny the reality that is climate change, I dare you to get off your ivory tower and away from the comfort of you armchair. I dare you to go to the islands of the Pacific, the islands of the Caribbean and the islands of the Indian ocean and see the impacts of rising sea levels; to the mountainous regions of the Himalayas and the Andes to see communities confronting glacial floods, to the Arctic where communities grapple with the fast dwindling polar ice caps, to the large deltas of the Mekong, the Ganges, the Amazon, and the Nile where lives and livelihoods are drowned, to the hills of Central America that confronts similar monstrous hurricanes, to the vast savannas of Africa where climate change has likewise become a matter of life and death as food and water becomes scarce. Not to forget the massive hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico and the eastern seaboard of North America. And if that is not enough, you may want to pay a visit to the Philippines right now."

(Teen) Dd has been trying to think of a fund raising event for her form or friends to run at school.

Rejected ideas so far for various reasons including overdoneness are:
Cake sale
Friendship bracelet sale.
Concert
Talent competition
Sponsored silence

Has anyone else got any ideas? It's a bit tricky. as the school has a big catchment so lots of them don't live near each other.

I just thought about a 'bob-a-job' type thing but no idea how they could go about it.
Ooh, maybe a book sale. Will suggest that too.

Totally agree selks.

In HK and Singapore, People are collecting first aid kits/hygiene/shelter items and water to hopefully start dispatching in a couple of weeks when proper pathways have been opened to reach remote areas.
Some freight forwarders are shipping HK to Manilla (to the Red cross among others) for free at the moment so we want to make use of their good will while it lasts. The filipino consulate and Nationals here are doing a great job organizing and communicating this.

Shelter, although smaller is already on the ground in Bohol following the 7.2 earthquake 3 weeks ago.
They had started rebuilding lives with their boxes and are now helping them salvage that and set up new kits. Am sure they will have operations up and running in no time.

Little info about Vietnam….how is it all there?

We are shipping next week here (KL)

Plus, Tacloban port open now.

DEC appeal being broadcast this evening on all main UK channels

Thanks timtam, sending a donation via Disasters Emergency Committee Philippines Typhoon Appeal PAYPAL is really quick and easy.

thanks timtam, great link. Nice and clear.

You can also give to DEC by phone on 0370 60 60 900

Badkitten
How about sponsored drink only fresh water (no sodas or juice etc)? Would highlight the terrible difficulties people face in accessing clean safe water after a storm?

trucks - what a brilliant idea! She has gone off to suggestion an auction (!) but if that gets vetoed then I will suggest your idea.

We've had skills auctions in the past at school,parents and children.
That worked well, everything from cake making to gardening to sewing and mending to music lesson taster sessions.

That's an idea. Probably bigger than the event she is thinking of, but I will suggest it.
Hopefully others are getting ideas too for their kids if they want to fundraise :)

Our school already has a non-uniform day this Friday, with a donation of £1 per pupil to Children in Need (voluntary collection in playground at drop off, with no-one actually checking if everyone pays). That's going ahead and for the original planned charity. But they are going to add further collecting tins for the Philippines if anyone - again totally voluntarily - will add another £1.

dds school is also doing a non uniform day for CIN. I havent heard of any plans to change.

Another mner has shared this handy link for ideas for fund raising :)

Does the school have a high uptake of schools dinners, and who provides them? Because, thinking of the "Big Curry Lunch" fundraiser, and thinking of emergency ration packs for the Philippines, things the basis that one scanty lunch won't hurt anyone; how about having a "disaster lunch" where all they get is plain water and plain rice, and the difference in cost is donated?

Why is China doing so little to help the Philippines?

This is very disappointing. China would the logical choice to help those poor people.

A disaster lunch is a really good idea. That would get them thinking for sure.

Interesting read ElenorRigby.

Here's this mirning's story from the BBC.

The death toll might not be as high as initially feared, though there re still many places which have not been reached.

The response in the first few hours of the DEC appeal was heartening.

ElenorRigby - Yes. It is interesting being in the Region itself, the opinions we have of China are very different to those in the West. China is a big problem for us - in many ways. We would be grateful for their help but The Philippines will not be asking them for it.

Thank-you so much everyone for thinking of ways to help. The response to the DEC was amazing! As for long term and numbers of dead, we hope that President Noynoy's revised estimates are more accurate (although I suspect they are a little underestimated). The reconstruction and getting people's livelihoods back though will be the work of years. Japan, with all its infrastructure and ease of access to the affected area is only just getting back to "normality" after the 2011 quake and subsequent Tsunami. Please keep your fingers crossed for us and keep us in your thoughts.

Thank-you all so much.