Greetings from Tacloban!

As we go about our work each day, we continue to hear stories not only of horrific loss, but also of amazing survival.  We want to start this blog by sharing a few of these testimonies with you.

Although our work here is concentrated on all the families living within three specific geographical areas, we have established contact with several churches whose members have become a great resource for us.  One of these is the New Life Christian Centre, located in a single story building near the centre of the city.  On the day of the storm, several of the staff members and church families, including children (about 25 people in total) gathered at the church as a precaution against the predicted typhoon.  Although the wind was stronger than they had ever experienced before, they felt confident about the structure’s ability to withstand the force of the wind.  Suddenly however, an unexpected water surge entered the room and its level quickly rose to their knees and then to their waists.  They were eager to save some of their musical instruments and equipment but it soon became evident that they needed to abandon this effort and concentrate solely on their own survival.  As the water continued its rapid rise, a hammer and ladder were located and placed to enable them to chop a hole in the ceiling. The children and adults climbed through the opening to sit on the rafters until the water, which rose to within one foot of the ceiling, subsided.  While they waited, they prayed and sang songs of praise. As they tell this story, there is no regret for the things that were lost – only deep sadness over the deaths of family members and friends. As we attended their worship service this past Sunday we found them thankful to God that their lives were spared!

The Christian Reformed Church of Tacloban was not nearly as fortunate. By viewing the photos you will see that the ground floor and the back of the church was totally destroyed. This church is located near the ocean and felt the full force of the “surge”.  When the storm subsided, four bodies were found behind the church and fifty other deaths were reported in the church’s immediate neighborhood.  This church too had a worship service this past Sunday – on the concrete slab where their sanctuary used to be.

We have now had the opportunity to meet the Mayor of the city on several occasions.  Mayor Alfred Romualdez is a wonderful Christian man. Through an amazing sequence of events too long to share in detail here, he and his family were miraculously spared as they too were in the eye of the storm.  Four coconut trees fell and landed on the four sides of their house and kept it anchored. As the water receded, they left their home to go to the municipal building on foot, passing by many bodies as they walked. The Mayor tirelessly continues to be present every day to encourage and be available to his staff and the people of the city. He meets with all interested parties and speaks to the constituents every day reassuring them and demonstrating his care and concern. In an environment of understandable despair, he tries to restore hope and testifies of his faith in a God who has a plan for rebuilding the lives of the people and the city of Tacloban.

For many people, to say that the only items they have left are the shirts on their backs is not an exaggeration.  They have lost all of their belongings, their wallets, their identification, their money, their personal records, their cell phones – simply everything! Many are living in make shift shelters built from the rubble or crammed into the few homes still inhabitable. Others are living in tents provided by UNHCR with two families per tent. More than twelve thousand people are still living in 23 evacuation centres.  Efforts are being made to move 1,100 of these 2,634 families into temporary bunk houses currently under construction in order to empty the schools of the evacuees.  This is intended to free up space in the schools so that classes can be resumed as soon as possible.

Meanwhile in our part of the city, the initial clean up in the streets is almost complete, compared to many of those in the outlying areas. The next phase of waste removal deals with the ruined contents of the buildings that have not been permanently abandoned.  This internal mess that was created by the storm surge is now being dumped on these streets, as well as residents’ garbage bags. There are obvious concerns of disease outbreaks as some of this garbage is now several weeks old.  Meanwhile numerous sidewalk vendors are setting up between piles of garbage providing many essential items for consumers who have lost most or all of their belongings. This is increasing the challenge of refuge removal as well as blocking traffic as the streets are overflowing with shoppers.

Restaurants are gradually being reopened as the owners and staff clean up and recover some of their equipment. A few days ago as we were getting a bite to eat at a sidewalk restaurant, a local person asked us where we were from, discussed the Tacloban situation and informed us:  “Even if you did nothing, your very presence is a great encouragement to us”.

A common slogan, hand written on homes and posters is “Tindog Tacloban” meaning Tacloban will rise again!  It is an expression that is reflected in the behaviours and attitudes of many of the people we meet. We stand in amazement at their positive outlook and resilience and see signs that indeed the people affected by Typhoon Haiyan will rise again!  We feel deeply privileged to be able to be part of this vision.