Typhoon Washi killed more than 1,200 people in mid-December and displaced hundreds of thousands
BANGKOK (AlertNet) – Almost three weeks after a deadly typhoon struck the Filipino island of Mindanao, the United Nations is calling on authorities to urgently find more land for tens of thousands of displaced people as the risk of disease outbreaks mounts.
Mid-December’s Typhoon Washi killed more than 1,200 people on the island in the southern Philippines after it sent torrents of water, mud and logs cascading through riverside and coastal villages. It destroyed more than 10,000 houses and displaced some 300,000 people, mainly in the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan in northern Mindanao. About 1,100 people are still missing.
The U.N. said disease risks compounded the need for urgent relocations. The Department of Health (DOH) on Monday confirmed there had been over 260 cases of the severe bacterial infection Leptospirosis among the displaced.
“Timing for identifying and implementing adequate and durable shelter solutions, primarily relocation of the displaced from ECs (evacuation centres) and other vulnerable groups, is of the essence due to increasing risk of disease outbreaks,” said the U.N. report.
“Access to basic sanitation and hygiene facilities and other vital services has become an added concern as many families have been temporarily relocated from classrooms targeted for clean-up to covered courts and parishes to allow for resumption of classes.”
Jacqui Badcock, the U.N.’s resident coordinator for the Philippines, said some 230,000 people remain displaced, with at least 197,000 living with relatives and in makeshift shelters. The U.N. is supporting the government by collecting data on the displaced, to identify the most vulnerable and prioritise who to move into relocation areas, she told AlertNet.
The exact number of families to be relocated is unclear, she said, but according to the U.N. report it is expected to be “much higher” than current estimates of 36,000 that only include those remaining in evacuation shelters.
As yet only about 26 hectares, or enough to build temporary housing for 19,000 people, have been secured in Iligan. Some land has been found in Cagayan de Oro but more is urgently needed, the U.N. said in its latest situation report.
“The main priority is finding available land for all the people that need accommodation,” Badcock said. “The housing options currently being discussed are for 30 square metres (323 square feet) per family whereas the international standard is 45 square metres a person.”
ADEQUATE FACILITIES REQUIRED
Before the storm – said to be one of the worst natural disasters the country has experienced in two decades – many had been living on riverbanks and areas vulnerable to flooding, because they wanted to be near cities and assured a livelihood. But they now need safer places to live after President Benigno Aquino gave a directive forbidding people to rebuild homes in flood-prone areas.
Badcock said the relocation land must have access to transport, schools, medical facilities and jobs, otherwise the displaced will return to the flood-prone areas where they formally lived. One way to motivate people to move voluntarily is to create employment opportunities in the new area, she said.
“To start with they can help in the construction of their new homes as labourers, carpenters,” she said. “Only 6 percent have kept their jobs since the storm. Many were street vendors.”
There is also a need to ensure the sites are well-equipped to deal with the influx.
“Existing (evacuation centres) and temporary relocation sites need upgrading and (the) addition of new latrines and bathing and communal facilities as well as infrastructure promoting privacy among the displaced,” said the U.N. situation report.
“Relocation sites require further improvement to ensure they provide adequate protection from daytime heat,” it added.
Help is also needed for people in remote and isolated areas and those living outside evacuation centres, and more funding is urgently needed to continue with food assistance and initiatives aimed at providing the displaced with cash and food in return for work.
Foreign governments, Filipino communities abroad, and private individuals and businesses have provided $12.6 million for relief efforts, but no additional funding has been received since the U.N. launched its $28.4 million flash appeal.
The appeal is only 20 percent funded, after contributions from the U.N., the European Union and the governments of Japan and Spain totalling nearly $5.8 million.
Displacement is not a new problem in Mindanao. Prior to the storm, the resource-rich island was already beleaguered by conflict and poverty. The government and the rebel Moro Islamic Liberation Front have been negotiating since 1997 to end more than four decades of conflict in Mindanao that has killed 120,000 people, displaced 2 million and stunted economic growth.
(Editing by Rebekah Curtis)
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