AMASCUAL, JOHN REY C.
BSED SCIENCE 1B
TYPHOON ODETTE
Typhoon preparation of my community and my family:
• We Build an emergency kit and we make a family emergency plan.
• Know our surroundings.
• Learned the elevation level of our property and whether the land is flood-prone, which will help
us know how our property will be affected when storm surge or tidal flooding are forecasted.
• Identify levees and dams in our area and determine whether they pose a hazard to you.
• Learned community hurricane evacuation routes and how to find higher ground.
• We determine where we would go and how we would get there if we needed to evacuate.
• We make plans to secure our property:
• Cover all of our home's windows with permanent storm shutters or 5/8-inch marine
plywood, cut to fit and ready to install (tape does not prevent windows from breaking!).
• Install straps or additional clips to securely fasten our roof to the frame structure.
• Be sure trees and shrubs around our home are well trimmed so they are more wind
resistant.
• Clear loose and clogged rain gutters and downspouts.
Things I and my family did after the typhoon:
• We keep listening to radio, TV (local or cable), and NOAA Weather Radio.
• We wait until an area is declared safe before entering.
• We Avoid weakened bridges and washed out roads. Do not drive into flooded areas!
• We Stay on firm ground. Moving water only 6 inches deep can sweep off our feet. Standing
water may be electricity charged from underground or downed power lines.
• We our Check gas, water, and electrical lines and appliances for damage.
• We did not drink or prepare food with tap water until you are certain it is not contaminated.
• We avoid using candles and other open flames indoors. We use a flashlight to inspect for
damage.
• Be especially cautious if using a chainsaw to cut fallen trees.
Philippines: Super Typhoon Rai (Odette) Humanitarian Needs and Priorities
(Dec 2021 - Jun 2022)
Format
Appeal
Source
• OCHA
Posted
24 Dec 2021
Originally published
24 Dec 2021
At a Glance
16M PEOPLE IN SEVERELY AFFECTED AREAS
2.4M PEOPLE IN NEED OF ASSISTANCE
530K PEOPLE TARGETED FOR ASSISTANCE
+50 NUMBER OF OP. PARTNERS
$107.2M FUNDING REQUESTED
Foreword by the Humanitarian Coordinator
Just over a week ago, Super Typhoon Rai, locally known as Odette, made its first
landfall on 16 December 2021, bringing torrential rains, violent winds, floods and
storm surges to the Visayas and Mindanao Islands. Overnight, the Typhoon left
thousands of families homeless, placing at risk some of the impressive social and
economic gains made since recovering from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic of
the past two years.
I congratulate the Government of the Philippines for their preparedness activities. The
effectiveness of pre-emptive evacuation and early warning messaging saved many
lives. Together, we are still grasping to understand the full impact on the lives of
communities and on the economy. An estimated 16 million people in six of the
Philippines 17 regions are affected, leaving about 2.4 million most vulnerable people
in need of assistance.
Needs are tremendous. Only days before many Filipinos expected to reunite with
family and friends, they now depend on our solidarity. Displaced people require safe,
temporary shelter and repair kits to rebuild their homes. Many of them require food,
potable water and medicines. People need access to sanitation and hygiene facilities.
Planned pilots for school reopenings have come to a halt, worsening the negative
psychosocial and mental impacts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of
children.
The Secretary Locsin of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Theodore Locsin Jr, asked me to
coordinate the response of the humanitarian community partners in support of
government relief efforts.
I am proud to say that humanitarian partners under the Humanitarian Country Team
(HCT) are ready to shift gear. Provided enough funding is available and in line with
the Government’s invitation to scale up collective efforts of in-country capacities, the
HCT plans to support life-saving assistance to at least 530,000 people. Most activities
benefit people in the worst-affected areas of CARAGA and Region VIII from
December 2021 to June 2022.
International and local Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) and Civil Society
Organisations (CSOs) are the backbone of this response. I am mindful of the
opportunity to show our commitment to strengthen local response mechanisms with
people at the center of the response.
We all are aware that disasters like this disproportionally affect the most vulnerable in
our communities, including children, women and girls, women and child-headed
households, people with disabilities, older people, LGBTIQ persons and indigenous
peoples. As such, the HCT is committed to integrate the protection needs of these
groups, including their discrimination and exposure to sexual and gender-based
violence (GBV), as well as their protection from sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA)
in the response.
I am mindful that we need to do more to align humanitarian and development action
to ensure a sustainable future. Contrary to predictions, Rai intensified from a tropical
storm to a super typhoon within hours before making landfall. In the coming months,
scientists will debate the attribution of Typhoon Rai to the impact of climate change.
For now, the unusual storm formation at the end of the year and its sheer intensity
require our collective effort to address the ever-increasing vulnerability of the region
to climate hazards.
As we look forward to 2022, the trajectory of needs and the required scale of the
response paint a dire picture. Together with the HCT, I remain committed to augment
the Government’s relief efforts and stand in solidarity with the people of the
Philippines.
Gustavo González
Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator
1. Situation Overview
Making its first landfall in the afternoon of 16 December 2021, Super Typhoon Rai,
locally known as Odette, brought torrential rains, violent winds, mudslides, floods and
storm surges to central-southern Philippines, specifically the Visayas and Mindanao
Islands, with maximum sustained winds of 195km/h and gustiness of 260km/h.
The Typhoon affected an estimated 16 million people across the six worst hit regions,
leaving about 2.4 million people in need of assistance. According to the National
Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) and the Department of
Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), it killed at least 258 people, injuring 568
people and displacing 631,000 people as of 23 December and across ten regions.
The number of casualties, injured and displaced people is expected to increase as
debris clearing progresses, communication and electricity are re-established and
isolated areas are reached.
Contrary to predictions, Rai intensified from a tropical storm to a super typhoon within
hours before making landfall. Super Typhoon Rai made nine landfalls in seven
provinces, first approaching Siargao (Surigao del Norte) with maximum sustained
winds of 195km/h before heading on with similar intensity to Cagdianao (Dinagat
Islands), Liloan and Padre Burgos (both in Southern Leyte), President Carlos P.
Garcia and Bien Unido (both in Bohol), Carcar (Cebu), La Libertad (Negros Oriental)
and Roxas (Palawan). Rai exited the Philippines Area of Responsibility on 18
December as the strongest storm to hit Mindanao in 10 years and the 3rd ever
strongest recorded storm in the Northern Hemisphere.
With Regions XIII (CARAGA), VI (Western Visayas), VII (Central Visayas), VIII
(Eastern Visayas) and IV-B (MIMAROPA) most affected, government reports and
initial rapid assessments suggest that communities in the provinces of Agusan del
Norte, Dinagat Islands, Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Leyte and Southern Leyte
bore the brunt of the Typhoon. Across the six provinces, where up to 46 per cent of
people live below the poverty line, at least 1.2 million people are affected and at least
101,000 houses destroyed/damaged. More so, extensive damage and humanitarian
needs are reported in Bohol and Cebu.
On 20 December, the Government declared the state of calamity in Region IV-B, VI,
VII, VIII, X (Northern Mindanao) and XIII for a period of one year. The declaration
provides authorities with access to emergency funds and the ability to reprogram
other funds for disaster response activities. At the same time, the Government
accepted the Humanitarian Country Team’s offer of assistance in augmenting locally-
led response efforts commensurate to the needs on the ground.
Food, potable water, temporary shelter and repair kits, hygiene kits, medical supplies,
water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities as well as protection and
psychosocial support services are urgently required. Affected people have expressed
the preference of cash assistance to access local markets, where possible.
It is of vital importance to engage with and serve affected communities. Affected
people need to be kept informed about available services and aid. Gender equality
and the diversity of affected communities have to be addressed when engaging the
community. Without access to reliable, timely, accurate information, affected people
are unable to make the choices necessary to recover from the disaster and regain
their livelihoods.
In its aftermath, some 71,000 houses are destroyed and 130,000 houses damaged
across regions in the Typhoon’s path. While houses made from light materials were
hit the hardest, the Typhoon was so strong at landfall that it also destroyed and
damaged houses built with concrete.
While many families who evacuated as a pre-emptive measure have started to repair
their damaged houses, DSWD reports that over 631,000 people are displaced. This
includes 372,000 people in evacuation centres as well as another 259,000 people
displaced with families and friends or in makeshift shelters. Unable to repair their
damaged or destroyed houses, all require immediate emergency shelter assistance
and further shelter recovery support.
Typhoon Rai caused significant damage to health facilities, schools and essential
services. Over 650,000 women of reproductive age are estimated to require urgent
sexual and reproductive health care services. Educational activities in 11 regions
have been interrupted or suspended. With many schools damaged and others used
as evacuation centres, it is of priority to ensure the return to school after the year-end
holidays.
The Typhoon left 269 cities and municipalities without electricity and 348 locations
with network interruptions. Authorities closed and restricted operations at 126
seaports and cancelled over 160 domestic and international flights. By 23 December,
authorities were able to restore power in 144, as well as communication lines in 112
cities and municipalities. Some major cities and economic hubs, including Cebu and
Puerto Princesa, as well as large areas in Surigao del Norte, Dinagat Islands and
Southern Leyte, remained without or with intermittent power one week after being hit
by the Typhoon. As assessments continue, the Government expects significant
damage to infrastructure and that it may take several months to restore essential
lifelines The Typhoon compromised access to safe water and sanitation facilities,
heightening the risk of communicable disease outbreaks. Many affected people are
now subsisting on springs and hand pumps for water, many of which are reported to
have been contaminated by flood and sea waters. Many families whose homes have
been totally or partially destroyed are reported to lack access to adequate sanitation
and hygiene facilities and materials. Those in evacuation centres – many of them
schools – are living in congested conditions with limited access to adequate WASH
facilities that meet COVID-19 health standards.
Livelihoods have been lost, particularly of those who depend on farming or fishing to
make a living. Authorities reported agriculture damage and losses across ten regions
amounting to PhP2.6 billion (US$51.6 million), affecting farmers with a volume of
production loss at 87,600 metric tons (MT) and 60,500 hectares of agricultural areas.
If not addressed, affected smallholder farmers and fisherfolk’s food security and
nutrition is likely to deteriorate.
Typhoon Rai struck as the Philippines was recovering from intense months of COVID-
19 travel restrictions and days before many Filipino families would have reunited over
the Christmas festivities. Since September, the Philippines has seen a sharp
decrease in COVID-19 cases with 181 new cases reported on 20 December
compared to over 19,201 on 20 September. About 45 per cent of the population was
fully vaccinated as of early December. With the Omicron variant detected in the
Philippines around the same time as Typhoon Rai struck, the nation-wide Alert Level
2 remains in place until the end of December.
In addition to the serious public health consequences, the negative economic impact
of the pandemic likely reduces the resiliency of people and their ability to bounce
back from losses to private properties and livelihoods. In 2020, measures to contain
the pandemic triggered a 9.6 per cent economic contraction, the highest across
members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), according to the
Asian Development Bank. In 2021, the Philippine economy is forecast to rebound and
grow by 4.5 per cent. The economic recovery is pending the steady progress in
vaccination leading to greater mobility of people and the reopening of businesses,
which on the downside risks the resurgence or renewed escalation of the pandemic.
The Typhoon exacerbates vulnerabilities. Prior to the Typhoon, many of the cities and
municipalities in the worst affected provinces already had a high poverty incidence,
categorized as 2nd to 6th class. Indigenous communities residing in affected areas
are particularly poor, malnourished, and lack access to public services, including
health care.
The impact of Typhoon Rai is spread across several islands with diverse geographic
characteristics and limited resilience. While storms typically make landfall in the
southern parts of Luzon or the eastern part of the Visayas, Rai struck regions further
south, which do not typically experience the brunt of typhoons. Southern Leyte, one
of the worst affected areas, was previously ravaged by Super Typhoon Haiyan
(Yolanda) in 2013. Affected are also the economic hub of Cebu as well as several
tourist spots in Siargao and Bohol. The impact of Typhoon Rai drew
comparisons with previous storms, including Typhoon Washi (Sendong) in 2011
which hit on the same day and killed over 1,000 people and affected close to half a
million people, as well as Typhoon Goni (Rolly) which swept across southern Luzon
in 2020 affecting over 2 million people.
The Government is leading the response through the NDRRMC and related
emergency response mechanisms. Humanitarian partners in the country – the United
Nations (UN), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the Red Cross and Red
Crescent Movement and the private sector - are augmenting national and local
authorities with the typhoon response, building on established partnership
agreements and relationships strengthened over years of collaboration. The
Government of the Philippines made significant efforts to protect people and
infrastructure, leveraging the investment made since Typhoon Haiyan in improved
early warning and reinforcing the important leadership role played by local officials.
The effectiveness of the Government’s pre-emptive evacuation of 427,900 people to
2,861 evacuation centres ahead of landfall saved many lives.
National and local authorities rapidly mounted search, rescue, emergency relief and
road clearing operations as soon as weather conditions improved. Humanitarian
partners with pre-existing agreements with line ministries quickly supported local
response efforts. While the full extent of the Typhoon’s impact is not yet known, rapid
assessments undertaken within the first 72 hours of disaster onset confirmed
widespread devastation.
The Government welcomed the HCT’s offer of assistance. Noting the continued fight
against COVID-19 and the socio-economic impact to mitigate, on 20 December, the
Secretary of Foreign Affairs invited the Resident Coordinator/Humanitarian
Coordinator and his team to step up collective efforts and support people in the most
affected areas. By 20 December, the HCT, working through the Inter-Cluster
Coordination Group (ICCG) and the Mindanao Humanitarian Team (MHT), HCT
members, with UN agencies, local and international NGOs, civil society organizations
(CSOs), foundations and church groups, conducted 33 rapid assessments to inform
this response plan.
Scaling up humanitarian support is increasingly urgent. As people are still shocked
from the impact of the Typhoon, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and
Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) is monitoring a low-pressure area
over the Pacific that is expected to bring rains to Mindanao on 26 and 27 December.
To avoid any further hazardous weather exposure, illness and harm to already
affected communities, it is important that people are able to restore their homes and
livelihoods as quickly as possible and within the next six months before the most
active typhoon season between June to September.
The Humanitarian Needs and Priorities document asks for US$107.2 million to
respond to the most urgent humanitarian needs for the next six months. The level of
priority has been based on initial results of government and HCT as well as on the
results of the Joint Analysis for Disaster Exposure (JADE) developed by the Pacific
Disaster Centre (PDC), WFP and OCHA on 15 December and updated on 16
December, modeling the potential disaster impact on communities and the economy
ahead of Super Typhoon Rai’s landfall.
The document prioritizes life-saving and protection programmes, focusing on most
vulnerable groups, including displaced persons, host communities, indigenous groups
and other affected people. Combining poverty indicators and severe wind strength
exposure, the document targets at least 530,000 people in the worst affected areas in
CARAGA and Region VIII, as well as in other hard-hit regions. In four to six weeks
from the launch, the Humanitarian Needs and Priorities plan will be revised to reflect
the needs arising from additional assessments.