Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda): Ships Aground and Ways to Help

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An email I sent for distribution at my church, First Baptist DC, answering queries about typhoon relief contribution opportunities for fellow Baptists here in the USA after Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda. Following the call for donations I’ve also included a gallery of ships run aground during the typhoon, a display of the fury of the storm.

You’ve probably seen the devastation the Philippines has suffered from Typhoon Haiyan. Thanks for your prayers and concern; my family is fine in Metro Manila, far north from the worst of the storm, but the damage in the Visayas is unprecedented and people need food, shelter, medical aid, and especially clean water. Many of you have asked how to help, so I’ve collected links to relief and aid organizations, both Baptist and otherwise, who have teams on site and are already in the thick of disaster response.

Please keep in mind that certain kinds of donations actually place greater burdens on relief efforts and aid organizations, and the best and most efficient mode of help is still cash contributions. This Christianity Today article is instructive: How Churches Can Help Without Hurting After Super Typhoon Haiyan.

The Lord bless you all through Jesus Christ for your charity and love towards the stricken people of the Philippines!

– Paulo

Addendum: Fellow Ateneo alumni can contribute through the Ateneo Call for Donations, and if you’re in the Philippines in the area of the AdMU campus in QC, there is a round-the-clock need for volunteers to help pack relief goods.

CNN has more links to relief and aid organizations.

And now a few pictures of ships that ran aground or were washed ashore by storm surge in the typhoon, some as far inland as a kilometer, showing just how powerful this storm was: