As a countless number of residents in the Philippines are displaced from their homes and families in the aftermath of Super Typhoon Haiyan, its embassy in Doha is calling on residents to send donations to help with the relief effort.
Tens of thousands of people are feared dead this weekend after Haiyan slammed into the central islands of the Philippines, leaving massive destruction in its path.
Haiyan is the fourth-strongest tropical cyclone in history, statistics at the Joint Typhoon Warning Center show.
In a memo circulated among the 200,000-strong Filipino community in Qatar today, the embassy said:
“Super typhoon Yolanda (International code: Haiyan) with maximum winds of 380 KPH has devastated the Visayas region and wrought damages to 2/3 of the country.
According to the Philippine National Red Cross, deaths exceed 1,200 but are per unofficial source, death could reach 10,000.”
It goes on to list different ways to donate to the victims of the typhoon. Residents can help with cash or in-kind donations, said Lyndon Magsino, the outreach and welfare chair of the United Filipino Organizations in Qatar (OFUQ), which connects all the different groups here. Speaking to Doha News, he added:
“Goods, clothes and medicine can be dropped off for donation at the Philippines embassy – there is a designated area. If the donation is in financial terms or cash, you can give it to Philippines embassy or myself.”
Other needs include:
Typhoon victims basic needs:canned foods, milk,water,sleeping bags, blankets,mosquito nets,toiletries. Send help to Philippine Embassy #Doha
— ailyn agonia (@AilynAgonia) November 10, 2013
Magsino can be reached at [email protected] and the embassy’s donations can be given to Faya Dela Paz (4483-1585).
Other ways to donate include directly remitting funds to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Center (NDRRMC). See the circular below for details.
Meanwhile, Patrick Meier of the Qatar Computing Research Institute (QCRI) is working with the United Nations on the relief effort, with a new software that filters social media messages and maps trouble spots to help assistance reach its destination faster.
The Wall Street Journal reports:
“This time, he hopes that the torrent of tweets, Facebook postings and Instagram videos expected to emerge from the affected areas in the Philippines could help build an even more detailed picture of the calamity, and provide valuable fresh clues for rescue teams.”
We’ll continue to update on ways to help the victims and their families.
Ideas? Thoughts?
