Local Filipino woman's family spared in typhoon

The past couple of days have been nerve-wracking for Joy Chicano Morgan as she awaits word on the fate of some of her family members in the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan.

The storm tore through six central Philippine Islands on Friday -- with winds of 147 miles per hour and gusts of 170 mph -- and may have killed as many as 10,000 people. Filipino Red Cross volunteers throughout the region are reporting significant damage and a growing death toll, while the full extent of the devastation continues to unfold, according to information from the American Red Cross, Southern Missouri Region.

One of the hardest-hit areas was Tacloban, which is near where Morgan's family lives. Tacloban is the Leyte provincial capital and has a population of more than 200,000 people.

Morgan, who is from Caloocan City in the metro Manila area, lives in Jackson and is a sales associate at Ashley Furniture. She said her immediate family members live there, and they were not as hard-hit as those in the provinces like Samar, where her aunts, uncles and cousins reside. "When it happened, I was really scared, because I was texting back home and it was probably two days before I heard anything. So it was really scary," she said.

She has yet to hear directly from her relatives, but an uncle posted on Facebook that there were no casualties in the family. "But a lot of people lost everything," Morgan said.

Meanwhile, Morgan said she's been getting her news from TV, Facebook and Twitter.

"I have lot of friends on Facebook who still haven't heard from family back home -- no text, no call, no email. Nothing," Morgan said.

The Philippines are made up of at least 7,000 islands and 98 million people speaking 154 dialects.

Morgan, who has lived in the U.S. for five and a half years and just became an American citizen May 1, said people who live in the cities usually fare better when a typhoon bears down. Usually, city dwellers live in two-story concrete houses, "so it's safe, unless there's a really big earthquake."

A lot of people in the provinces live in nipa huts, a type of stilt house, that "can blow away in an instant." Those are the people who likely lost everything and have to start over.

Morgan's brother's Facebook page said their mother is gathering old clothes to give to people in the provinces. She said her parents don't have much to give, so she's going to take up a collection, too.

"I think they'd appreciate anything, even a big T-shirt," Morgan said.

This is the second disaster to befall the Southeast Asian island nation in less than a month. Nearly 3 million people were affected by the 7.2-magnitude quake in mid-October, according to Reuters news service.

Father David Hulshof, pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Cape Girardeau, said U.S. Catholic bishops are having their annual meeting in Washington, D.C., this week, and he expects a response to the typhoon is on the agenda. The bishops probably will share plans with their local churches when they return. In the meantime, Hulshof said, Catholic churches and individuals are free to respond to Catholic Relief Services, or people can wait for local and national collections.

CRS already has information posted on its website, http://crs.org/, and has people on the ground responding. Those interested may visit the CRS site, or call 877-435-7277.

"I'm sure the response will be generous, and certainly we'll be hearing from our bishop when he returns," Hulshof said.

Rob Mehner, spiritual formation pastor at LaCroix Church, said the church usually responds to disasters through United Methodist Committee on Relief. "So how we typically respond is we will remind our folks that they have an opportunity to help in areas like the Philippines by giving there," Mehner said. He added the church has found that with large tragedies, it's better to wait and provide help for specific needs.

Mehner said the church works through organizations already on the ground and may send teams of 10 to 15 people when they get the word from UMCOR. Those teams will stay for a week to two weeks.

The American Red Cross also is providing support to the Philippine Red Cross for its response to Typhoon Haiyan. People who wish to help those affected by the typhoon may visit redcross.org or call 800-733-2767.

rcampbell@semissourian.com

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