Philippines: Scores remain homeless, require humanitarian aid

(Vatican Radio) A week after a typhoon swept through the Philippines claiming thousands of lives, the United Nations has doubled its estimate of people made homeless to nearly two million.
More than a thousand people remain missing after Typhoon Haiyan struck the country, while nearly 4,000 people have been confirmed dead.
The Catholic humanitarian agency CAFOD is among those helping to bring aid to the survivors of the typhoon.
With so many people having lost their homes, humanitarian workers are trying through difficult conditions to bring basic supplies to those in the affected areas.
“The typhoon has had a catastrophic impact on the lives of more than 11 million people,” said Nick Harrop, World News Officer for CAFOD, in an interview with Vatican Radio. “Many have lost their homes, their possessions, and their means of making a living.”
The people of the Philippines, he said, are in need of shelter, food, household goods, and clean water.
He noted that hygiene is also a concern. “We’ve heard reports of dead bodies on the street,” he said. “Hygiene and sanitation will be very important to prevent the spread of disease.”
While various obstacles, such as fallen power lines, road blocks, and flooding have made it difficult to bring help to the victims, humanitarian aid is getting through to the affected areas. It is, however, “an incredibly chaotic and difficult situation.”
He said that reports coming into CAFOD say that “working through the Church really helps because people really respect our local partners in Caritas Philippines.” One priest told Harrop that by wearing his priest collar, “meant that people would respect him and let the convoy he was with through.”
“So, aid is getting through,” he said, “but we’re not underestimating what a challenging environment it is.”
Listen to Ann Schneible’s interview with Nick Harrop: