Typhoon KETSANA – PHS091
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150 route de Ferney, P.O. Box 2100 1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland Preliminary Appeal Tel: 41 22 791 6033 Fax: 41 22 791 6506 E-mail: [email protected] Coordinating Office Philippines Typhoon KETSANA – PHS091 Appeal Target: USD 784,798 Balance Requested: USD 656,998 Geneva, 5 October 2009 Dear Colleagues, On 26 September 2009, tropical storm “Ketsana”, locally known as “Ondoy” made its landfall at around 11:00 am and unleashed continuous heavy rains for almost 8 hours. The typhoon mainly hit the island of Luzon including the National Capital Region and provoked flash floods and landslides. 11 regions are affected, including the National Capital Region (NCR), the Cordillera Autonomous Region and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindana. In the National Capital Region, worst areas hit were Manila, Muntinlupa, Marikina and Taguig. Based on a 2 October report of the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC), the total number of population affected is 3,084,997 individuals (629,466 families) from 1,368 barangays (communes) all over Luzon. Death toll has reached 293 with 42 still reported missing. These numbers are expected to rise. Around 10,203 houses are partially or totally damaged. Rescue operations are progressing slowly and some areas could not yet been reached, including those still under water. Communications in disaster stricken areas is difficult in particular where electricity remain cut off. There is important need in food and water. Shelters have been open but there is need for more. ACT members the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP), Christian Aid, Lutheran World Relief and the United Methodist Coordination Committee on Relief (UMCOR) have carried out a preliminary assessment. Immediate needs are food, drinking water, beddings (mat and light blankets), hygiene kits (bath soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, and laundry soap), clothes and house construction materials. The Preliminary Appeal PHS091 consists of NCCP and Christian Aid proposals. LWR and UMCOR will join the response later. Christian Aid and its partners plan to support 6,000 families with food, non-food items and housing repair. NCCP and its member churches propose to support up to 5,000 families with food and non food items, deliver medical assistance to 1000 individuals and prepare for livelihood rehabilitation in the post-crisis phase. ACT is a global alliance of churches and related agencies working to save lives and support communities in emergencies worldwide. The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland. Philipine Typhoon Ketsana 2 Prel. Appeal PHS091 ACT members will coordinate a full appeal within three weeks. Project Completion Date: 30 June 2010 Reporting schedule: Every two weeks during the first month, the members receiving a Preliminary Appeal funding advance will submit a brief (one-two page) Situation Report to the ACT CO, summarizing activities undertaken and progress made in the emergency response. Photographs and human interest stories should accompany the reports. Thereafter, reports will be submitted according to standard Appeal reporting. Summary of Appeal Targets, Pledges/Contributions Received and Balance Requested (US$): Members Christian Aid NCCP Total Total Appeal Targets 542,386 242,412 784,798 Less: Pledges/Contr. Recd. 127,800 0 127,800 Balance Requested from ACT Alliance 414,586 242,412 656,998 Please kindly send your contributions to either of the following ACT bank accounts: US dollar Account Number - 240-432629.60A IBAN No: CH46 0024 0240 4326 2960A Euro Euro Bank Account Number - 240-432629.50Z IBAN No: CH84 0024 0240 4326 2950Z Account Name: ACT - Action by Churches Together UBS AG 8, rue du Rhône P.O. Box 2600 1211 Geneva 4, SWITZERLAND Swift address: UBSWCHZH80A Please also inform the Finance Officer Jessie Kgoroeadira ([email protected]) and the Programme Officer, Michelle Yonetani ([email protected]), of all pledges/contributions and transfers, including funds sent direct to the implementers, now that the Pledge Form is no longer attached to the Appeal. We would appreciate being informed of any intent to submit applications for EU, USAID and/or other back donor funding and the subsequent results. We thank you in advance for your kind cooperation. For further information please contact: ACT Director, John Nduna (phone +41 22 791 6033 or mobile phone + 41 79 203 6055) or ACT Program Officer, Michelle Yonetani (phone +41 22 791 6035 or mobile phone +41 79 285 2916) John Nduna Director, ACT Co-ordinating Office Philipine Typhoon Ketsana 3 Prel. Appeal PHS091 DETAILS OF THE EMERGENCY: On 26 September 2009, tropical storm “Ketsana”, locally known as “Ondoy” made its landfall at around 11:00 am and unleashed continuous heavy rains for almost 8 hours. The typhoon mainly hit the island of Luzon including the National Capital Region with winds of 85 kilometers per hour and gustiness of up to 100 kilometers per hour. At the height of the heavy downpour, flash floods and landslides occurred. Waters rose so fast that people living in low lying areas were caught unaware. They were forced to stay on the roofs of their houses to avoid being swept by the flood. Collapsed river walls weakened by floodwaters caused more damages coupled with raging waters. The onslaught of Ketsana affected 11 regions including the National Capital Region (NCR), the Cordillera Autonomous Region, Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindana. In the National Capital Region, worst areas hit were Manila, Muntinlupa, Marikina and Taguig with most number of affected barangays (villages) and hence, families and individuals. In Central Luzon, worst hit areas were Bulacan and Pampanga; Laguna and Batangas in South Luzon. Based on the 02 October 4:00 a.m. report of the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC), the total number of population affected is 3,084,997 individuals, or 629,466 families from 1,368 barangays all over Luzon. Death toll has reached 293 with 42 still reported missing. These numbers are still expected to rise as many are still unreported.There are 526 evacuation centers catering to around 419,333 persons. Around 10,203 houses were damaged including 4,270 totally damaged. Damage to infrastructure is estimated at 1.8B PhP while damage to agriculture is estimated to reach 3.2B PhP. The Department of Social Works and Development, Philippine National Red Cross, San Miguel Corporation, and other private institutions and individuals have provided various relief assistance to the communities, including both food and non-food items and medical assistance. Rescue efforts are ongoing and some areas could not yet been reached, in particular those that are still submerged in water. In areas where water has subsided, the streets and drainage system are clogged by mud. Choke points of water ways, small streets, and clogged drainage did not allow the waters to drain well. Thus, some of the streets in affected areas are still impassable by vehicles and therefore cannot be immediately reached by rescuers or those giving relief. Water and power supply are cut off because water and power systems and generators were damaged by floodwater. Communications in disaster stricken areas is difficult. Most of those stranded cannot call for help because of communication problems as electric services are cut-off. Though many people are involved in rescue and relief operations, there is more to do for many still have no access to food and water. Response is slow because of many factors including lack of equipment. Majority of those badly affected are informal settlers who live on a daily subsistence and lost not only their homes and whatever little property they have but also their minimal sources of livelihoods. The goods of street vendors and the vehicles of the pedicab and tricycle drivers were washed away, destroyed by floodwaters or covered with mud, solid waste, and debris. Without the much needed resource for their livelihood, these families will have very limited access to food that is necessary for survival. To survive, many now rely on basic community social capital and the generosity of those who offer relief assistance that often only allows for 1 - 3 days supply for food for households. Some of the low-lying areas were submerged in neck-deep or more than 20 feet of floodwater. There are communities located in the riverside whose makeshift homes have either been partially or completely destroyed by the floodwaters. The sudden onslaught of floods left the families with no time to prepare their belongings, enabling them to bring only a few items (i.e. clothes and minimal household items) or for some, none at all. Whatever food supply that they had stored and household items they owned were washed away or destroyed by floods. All the families have practically no financial capacity to procure goods and will need immediate food relief for nourishment, basic household assets for cooking and sleeping, and hygienic containers for water storage. Philipine Typhoon Ketsana 4 Prel. Appeal PHS091 At the moment, some of the families are still staying in basketball courts and schools that have been converted into temporary evacuation centres. Conditions in these centres are poor since families overcrowd the shelters and environmental sanitation and waste disposal concerns are not being addressed. Reports of illnesses (i.e water-borne diseases --- leptospirosis, diarrhea, dengue, influenza) are rising in. Medicines are therefore necessary to respond to and mitigate these illnesses. Other families have returned to their dwellings and are starting to rebuild it. Some families meanwhile have opted to stay on the sidewalks and build makeshift tents where they temporarily reside while some are still staying with friends or relatives. Many areas do not have a permanent source of potable water and the affected population is relying on water being provided by assisting groups.