CREDIT: GLOBALPOST.COM
Typhoon Haiyan left many of the Philippine islands in ruin.

On November 8, Typhoon Haiyan, also known as Typhoon Yolanda, flattened many cities in the Philippine islands with winds gusting up to 378 kilometers per hour before landfall, leaving devastation in its wake.

According to CNN, as of November 16, there is an estimated death toll of 3,633 and 12,487 people injured. Approximately 9 million people have been affected, with 2 million having been displaced by the natural disaster. The main issues that the country is immediately facing are hunger, thirst, and a lack of medical aid.

As heard on CTV News, the typhoon devastated nine different regions of the Philippines, which is made entirely of islands. Canada is providing up to $5 million in support and has deployed members of its Disaster Assistance Response Team to help in emergency and first-aid response.

Kim is a Western University student who came to Canada from the Philippines when she was 15 years old. She has been back to the Philippines three times since coming here and was “very worried” since her hometown was hit very hard by another typhoon only months before. “My first thought was to check in with my extended family and my friends,” she said about her reaction upon first hearing about the tragedy. “Thankfully, everyone is safe.”

Although the focus of the media has mainly been on Tacloban City, the entire central portion of the country has been decimated. “It's not only aid distribution that is the challenge, it's also [the] overcrowding at evacuation and makeshift centres in addition to the lack of food and clean water, which is leading to widespread diseases,” Kim said. Access to the devastated regions of the islands has proven to be a challenge, yet despite this and the horrid conditions, humanitarian aid has slowly been reaching the people. But the aid is still slow to come, and there are still many of the isolated communities that have yet to receive significant aid, as stated by Reuters Canada. In the northeast part of the Capiz province alone, 60 per cent of the people still need food support.

“The international community has been extremely generous in their relief efforts of goods and volunteers, although it will likely still take years before the areas can be fully rebuilt,” said Kim.

If you are interested in contributing a donation to the relief efforts, the Canadian government will match the donations made to registered charities (such as the Red Cross) that provide aid to the Philippines to deal with the effects of Typhoon Haiyan until December 8.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” Kim said about donations and thoughtful support. In the face of adversity, every dollar makes a difference.