9.8 million and counting affected by super typhoon

In wake of super typhoon, UN spokesperson says number of people affected likely to rise

The number of people affected by the devastating super typhoon which hit the Philippines archipelago several days ago has ballooned out from original estimates to 9.8 million people — with numbers still expected to rise.

Estimates of numbers affected by Typhoon Haiyan, which devastated the country on November 8, have more than doubled from the figure reported just three days ago, which was 4.3 million.

That figure came from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in the Philippines’ third official ‘Situation Report’ in the wake of the super typhoon — which killed more than 10,000 people.

But speaking to Khaleej Times from Manila on Monday — hours before the official release of the OCHA Philippines fourth ‘Situation Report’ — UN spokesperson, Orla Fagan, said the number affected had more than doubled, while those displaced by the country’s worst natural disaster was now believed to be in the order of 584,000 — jumping from an earlier estimation of 330,900.

She said the numbers being talked about currently were likely to be “just a fraction of what we are expecting to see in the coming days”, as continuing bad weather was hampering accessibility to typhoon-hit areas.

“More devastation is bound to be uncovered as more reports come in. The area the typhoon hit is so vast, so as the week goes by, and help increases, we’ll know more,” she said.

Fagan said 13.5 metric tonnes of high-energy biscuits, including some sent from Dubai, had now reached Tacloban — one of the worst hit areas — and aid workers were working through the night to distribute food and water to victims there, and in the surrounding areas.

“These biscuits are very calorific, so small quantities will give people some of the nutrition they need, while work is still ongoing to bring in basic food needs,” she said.

Fagan said the UN’s focus was on everyone, not just those living in the most badly affected areas.

“The UN stick to the humanitarian needs of all in situations like this. It has nothing to do with bigger towns, or worst-hit areas. The immediate needs of people are what we focus on, no matter where they are.”

She said the reason aid workers had not been able to reach some of the smaller, more remote-areas was due to poor access.

“The debris and mud doesn’t help. There was a lot of rain today (Monday) too. If the weather subsides, we can start reaching more areas.”

On Monday morning, at 9.33am local time, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Service Administration released a public storm warning about Tropical Depression Zoraida.

With strong to gale force winds predicted, Fagan said the early impacts of Zoraida had not affected aid work much as yet.

“(Zoraida) is not having too much of an effect on aid coming through. It is expected to hit in the morning (Tuesday), but it has been listed as a category one storm, which means it’s big - but nothing like the typhoon.”

Typhoon Haiyan left a trail of destruction, devastating a total of 36 provinces in nine regions. According to the third ‘Situation Report’ released on November 9, 1,223 evacuation centres were being used to house displaced victims, with some taking shelter in host communities.

A state of emergency was declared by the Philippine government in the wake of the typhoon, and Fagan said figures on those affected were expected to increase as more information became available.

kelly@khaleejtimes.com

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