Manila, Philippines

Super Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest in world history, reached the Philippines in the early morning hours of Friday, November 8.

The storm made landfall six times, flattening entire villages with winds up to 295 kph (183 mph). As of Tuesday, the death toll reached 1,774 with more than 800,000 residents displaced.

The Church of the Nazarene’s Asia-Pacific Region Office reported two districts, Eastern Visayas and Panay, were hit the hardest and four others were impacted: Bicol, Central Visayas, Negros, and Southern Tagalog. There are more than 4,400 Nazarenes on the two hardest hit districts, according to 2013 statistics.

In Panay, the district superintendent’s house and Tiwi Church of the Nazarene were destroyed. The D.S., who is visiting local churches and families on his bicycle, said Kalubigan Church of the Nazarene’s parsonage was damaged. Culasi Church of the Nazarene is housing 15-20 Nazarene families that were evacuated from the coastal zone and several other churches are cooking food and providing shelter for displaced families.

The Eastern Visayas District experienced unprecedented destruction and has little means of communication. The D.S. reported several Nazarenes are in an evacuation shelter. One city, Tacloban, was flooded 3 meters (10 feet) by a storm surge.

Nazarene Child Sponsorship reports all sponsored children in Davao are safe.

In coordination with Nazarene Compassionate Ministries, the Philippine Field Office Disaster Response Rapid Assessment Team selected four major response methods. The first, distribution of emergency relief supplies, includes providing blankets, mosquito nets, candles, and food packs that will feed a family of five for two days. The second focus is on hygiene and clean water. Third is shelter, and the fourth is protection and emotional care, including psychosocial intervention and trauma diffusing for children.

NCM and Global Mission personnel arrived safely in the Philippines and are attempting to reach affected areas despite challenges.

How to help

Prayer is requested for those affected and relief efforts.

Additional volunteers are needed to help local volunteers/church members in the affected places:

Priority 1 (Immediate need):  

  • Medical teams/health workers (foreigners and locals)
  • Stress debriefers (locals)
  • Point persons to coordinate logistics, communications, organizing and mobilizing volunteers, shipment, and relief distribution manager
  • Skilled construction workers (at least in Ormoc City)

Priority 2 (needed next week if possible):  

  • Teachers, lay people, and even college seniors with teaching/education background to conduct psychosocial intervention for children

Priority 3 (can come in three weeks from now):

  • Skilled construction workers for the rest of Leyte and Samar (depending on the availability of materials in the area)
  • Anyone who wants to be involved in clean-up and other work

Staging area of relief and volunteers for Samar and Leyte is Cebu City. Foreign volunteers will fly into Manila then to the Cebu City airport or Iloilo.

Volunteers will cover travel expense to Leyte or Samar. Lodging (in tents) and food will be provided. There are no hotels in the affected areas, so volunteers should be ready and willing to experience many discomforts.

Donate online now through Nazarene Compassionate Ministries by clicking here.

To send donations by mail, make checks payable to “General Treasurer” and send them to:

Global Treasury Services

Church of the Nazarene

P.O. Box 843116

Kansas City, MO 64184-3116

Be sure to put ACM1200 in the Memo area.

In Canada, make checks payable to “Church of the Nazarene Canada” and send them to:

Church of the Nazarene Canada

20 Regan Road, Unit 9

Brampton, Ontario L7A 1C3

Be sure to put ACM1200 in the Memo area.

*Reprinted from ncnnews.com