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| There are 8 SOS Children's Villages in the Philippines. |
December 20, 2011: An estimated 1,000 people living on the southern island of Mindanao and surrounding region in the
Philippines have died from severe flooding caused by Tropical Storm Washi. The storm slammed into the island of Mindanao, a southeastern area of the Philippines rarely touched by cyclones. All SOS families and facilities in the Philippines are reportedly safe.
Residents of the Philippines have come to expect annual typhoons, but this storm, which arrived during the night of December 15, caught people by surprise. Mindanao does not typically experience the level of weather damage affecting other parts of the country. The twenty heavy storms that annually pound the Philippines usually land on Luzon island, northwest of Mindanao.
Tropical Storm Washi inflicted the worst suffering on two ports, Cagayan de Oro and Iligan, where whole homes and families were swept away, and thousands of families were forced to flee. On top of the hundreds of deaths, some 800 men, women, and children are missing. The Philippine National Red Cross is working with government agencies, the police, and the army to locate missing family members.
Millions of tons of rice, pineapples, and bananas -- key to Mindanao's agricultural economy - -have been destroyed. This loss will affect people’s livelihoods.
Running for Their Lives
Many of the storm’s victims live near rivers, Gwendolyn Pang, secretary-general of the Philippine National Red Cross, told IRIN news service.
According to IRIN, Alicia Mapuyag, a mother of five from Iligan, was woken by the sound of rolling water inside her small home.
“There was no time to retrieve dry clothes and supplies,” said Mapuyag. “We just grabbed each other and went outside.” Her teenage sons wrapped rope around a tree to guide them across the street, where they waited for help in a two-story building.
“People were crying out the names of their missing loved ones. It was terrible,” said Mapuyag
The latest displacement of thousands of households compounds the tragedy faced by families who for years have been forced to flee their homes because of a longtime insurgency on Mindanao island.
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| A Loving Home for Every Child |
SOS Has a Longstanding, Widespread Presence in the Philippines
SOS has been raising vulnerable children in the Philippines for almost fifty years. With eight SOS Children’s Villages across the archipelago nation, including SOS-Davao, on Mindanao, SOS is a trusted provider of family-based care for some 700 Philippine children who would otherwise have no warm homes or families.
Sponsor a child in the Philippines today and help us continue to provide warm homes and families for children in need.