SALT LAKE CITY — On Nov. 7, Super Typhoon Haiyan, the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane with sustained winds of 195 miles per hour, slammed into the Philippine island of Samar and hit Vietnam two days later. Current reports estimate that the storm has killed 10,000 people, with approximately 9.5 million people affected.
In Utah, local Filipinos worry for their family and friends. The Most Rev. John C. Wester, Bishop of Salt Lake City, is calling for the diocese to respond with prayers and aid. (See the home page for the link to his message.)
Raul Yumul said that he cannot imagine what people are going through in his hometown.
"It affects me a lot, knowing the poverty that we have back home. It’s something that is unimaginable," said Yumul, referring to the fact that the majority of people in the Philippines live day to day, and the devastation brought by the typhoon means the already limited resources are totally gone.
"You can imagine people coming from really poor backgrounds trying to make sure that they will have at least a few items that they would need in the coming days," said Yumul, who works for Catholic Community Services. "It’s not like they have food in their refrigerator that they can rely on for a week. When this type of calamity happens you can just imagine how they are going to be so dependent on the aid that hopefully will be coming to them."
Remembering all the solidarity that people in the Philippines had every time that a typhoon struck when he was a little boy, Yumul said he can’t visualize the devastation that Super Typhoon Haiyan left behind.
"I cannot imagine how devastating it was. … The news that I have heard from people in that area – we can just not compare this to anything that we had before," said Yumul. "I remember cleaning up after the typhoons and all the mud and all the decay. We kind of got used to it … but this one was a lot stronger and the devastation is something unimaginable."
Thousands of people are believed to be missing in the ruins of towns and villages in the Southeast Asian island country.
"To think of the number that have been killed is small comparison with the number of how many millions of people have been affected," said Jun Enriquez, a Catholic member of the Utah Filipino community.
Enriquez said that the Filipino community is gathering as one in Utah to figure out how to help their families, friends and community in the Philippines.
"Some of our friends here have members of their families there and they haven’t been able to communicate with them yet; what they know is what they have heard and seen in the news," said Enriquez.
Father Joseph Frez, pastor of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus Parish in Midvale, is also from the Philippines. Fr. Frez asks the community to remember that every person belongs to the Body of Christ.
"If our Church is asking for help we should help them. We are in solidarity with them. … Regardless of the religious affiliation, the Catholic Church is open to everyone," said Fr. Frez. "In the Philippines people go to the churches to seek refuge in disasters, but now the parishes were devastated too. … From here we are in solidarity with the people; they are in our prayers; the people need always to reveal their faith."
Catholic Relief Services, the official international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic Church, in cooperation with other agencies, is trying to provide 100,000 families with shelter and essential living supplies in the typhoon’s aftermath.
Donations to CRS may be made online at https://secure.crs.org/site/Donation2?df_id=6140&6140.donation=form1&s_src=home-page-interupt.
Donations also may be made by calling 1-877-435-7277, 8 a.m. - 11 p.m. Eastern time, or mailed to: Catholic Relief Services, P.O. Box 17090, Baltimore, MD 21297-0303.
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