Typhoon Haiyan: Canadian help is on the way

Listen Even before one of the strongest typhoons ever recorded tore across the Philippines Friday, killing an estimated 10,000 people in Leyte province alone and flattening cities and villages across its central islands, Canadian relief workers were preparing for the storm and its aftermath.

The Toronto-based non-governmental organization Global Medic already had a team on the ground Saturday with units that can purify between 38 and 65 litres of water per minute.  It sent four additional workers Sunday with more supplies, including purification tablets.

The Canadian Red Cross had also deployed an advance team to survey the situation and an emergency health unit will fly out to the Philippines Tuesday or Wednesday.   “These are doctors, nurses, health professional technicians who are trained in advance, are ready at all times and we’ve now called on them,” says Pam Aung Thin, the CRC’s director of public affairs and government relations.  “We’re still trying to determine exactly how many people we need, but we’re probably talking a dozen to twenty, at least.”

Aung Thin says one of the biggest challenges facing personnel will be accessing areas cut off due to the destruction, a concern echoed by Matt Capobianco who is part of the Global Medic team.  He told the Toronto Star newspaper however, “we’ll be sourcing out all kinds of transportation…We always find a way to get to the hardest-hit areas.”

Canadians responded quickly and generously to the devastation.  By Monday afternoon, the Canadian Red Cross had already received $1.2-million dollars in donations.  The federal government has promised to match individual donations made to registered charities over the next month and it has also pledged up to $5-million in aid.

Late Monday afternoon, between 35 and 50 members of Canada’s Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) left for the Philippines on a C-17 airplane transporting supplies.  The DART is composed of military personnel specially trained and equipped to provide humanitarian assistance and even help in repairing infrastructure.  Federal Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird said of the government’s decision to approve the deployment that it is “probably faster than we’ve ever moved”.

According to the United Nations, almost 10 million people have been affected by the typhoon and an estimated 660,000 have been displaced.