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?

[LoopaDaLoopa]

:( :( 10,000 in Tacloban city alone according to this

[meditrina]

I saw this on the BBC page, and the figures for the dead and missing are staggering. Yesterday it was being reported as 100 and expected to rise.

I'm not sure that Europe has yet cottoned on to the scale of the disaster and the loss of life.

[LoopaDaLoopa]

It is horrific. So many people unaccounted for, it could still go up a lot from what I'm reading

[LoopaDaLoopa]

Philippines Red Cross donations page if anyone has anything to spare

[LoopaDaLoopa]

awful images

[oricella]

There's a handful of us on a thread in weather - but most people seem to be more interested in the latest christmas ads . Devastating situation and only worse news to come..

[LoopaDaLoopa]

There's nothing we can do, is there? Except donate, and wait. I'm in Malaysia so not far away, wondering if there's something more real I can do

[AnyaKnowIt]

Heard reports that it could be worse then the boxing day one

[meditrina]

I've just spotted the Weather thread too

UK is sending aid (cash to some organisations - total first tranche £5m - and experts). Unless you have relevant expertise, then all that you can do is send money in the short term and then other items if/when specifically appealed for.

[oricella]

There really is so little we can do. And where on earth do you start with rebuilding and making it storm proof?

[ohshitimlate]

I'm aware but not discussing as there is nothing I can do. It's so utterly horrible :(

[LoopaDaLoopa]

Fair point.

[TanteRose]

it makes me sick that we KNOW these major events are coming, they are getting more frequent and yet nothing changes

we have the money and technology to send astronauts into space, to photograph this storm so that the weather girl on CNN can say how "spectacular" it looks from space , but we can't find the money and resources to build levies to protect from storm surge, or make sure that people have decent homes to live in, or storm shelters, or evacuation plans, or transport to escape....it is a fucking CRIME

[TanteRose]

just to clarify, the delegate is talking about Typhoon Bopha that hit the Philippines a year ago

[LoopaDaLoopa]

It's awful, isn't it? stuff a few bit multinationals on Leyte and they'd soon have surge barriers...

[meditrina]

Latest BBC article - it all sounds very grim, in terms of the death toll and the circumstances of the survivors.

Th storm is now heading for Vietnam, where 600,000 people have been evacuated prior to expected landfall.

[CatAmongThePigeons]

So awful that it was known this would happen and nothing has been done.

Someone I know may be in the Philippines.

[BoreOfWhabylon]

Bump

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

I'll put a link on the weather thread so people looking at that have some idea of how they can contribute.

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

For those going via the Philippines Red Cross page 1500php =£15

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

Sorry, it's 1000php=£15. Trying to rush!