Hiyan's wake stirs heartfelt plea
When Typhoon Haiyan carved a path of destruction through the Philippines last Friday, Janice Blackney feared the worst.
The Busselton nurse, who moved to Australia seven years ago, prayed her family would survive.
“We’ve never had such a bad storm. Filipinos are resilient; storms come several times a year, but they underestimated this one,” Mrs Blackney said.
“I think the governmentdidn’t communicate with people as well as they could have. Perhaps they could have evacuated people sooner.”
It was only about three weeks since Mrs Blackney’s family were temporarily relocated from their home in Bohol because of a massive earthquake which rocked the country on October 15, killing hundreds.
This time her family were unscathed, but as the full extent of Haiyan’s horror emerged this week, Mrs Blackney was moved to tears by those who have perished in her ravaged homeland.
“At first I was thankful my family were spared this tragedy, but then I felt terrible about all my fellow Filipinos who died,” she said.
“Seeing the dead bodies on the ground … it made me cry. I couldn’t sleep at night. All I wanted to do was watch the news and find out what’s happening.”
It is feared that as many as 11 million people had been affected.
Many towns and villages are still cut off from the outside world as the Filipino government struggles to co-ordinate its aid response.
Determined to help, Mrs Blackney is appealing to the Busselton and Dunsborough community to donate canned food and clothes.
The goods will be transported free by courier to the Philippines where they will be distributed to those who need them most.
“To see those people suffering … being cold at night, bitten by mosquitoes and with no food for days, not even a glass of water,” she said.
“Put yourself in that situation, where help is taking so long because of the inaccessibility of the area. Even a small donation can go a long way.”
Donations can be dropped off at 4 Stockyard Lane in Geographe or 4 Darter Street in Broadwater until November 30.
