UN doubles funding call for RP typhoon victims to $144M

As the death toll and damage from the quick succession of tropical cyclones that visited the country from late September to early November climbed, the United Nations amended on Wednesday its $74-million flash appeal to $144 million. The revised flash appeal is seen to assist 4.2 million people, including some 520,000 children under the age of five, affected by tropical storms Ondoy, Pepeng and Santi, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. “Of particular concern for humanitarian agencies are the estimated 1.7 million people still displaced or living in areas that remain flooded," OCHA said. According to the OCHA, nearly 1,000 people died as a result of the disasters, while 9.8-million lives were affected and over 40,000 homes were damaged or destroyed. The revision in the flash appeal came after the latest assessments by the UN agencies and non-governmental organizations. UN resident coordinator to the Philippines Jacqui Badcock earlier told GMANews.TV that an 18-member team composed of nine UN officials toured the different parts of Luzon to reassess the damage brought by the series of storms that visited the country. “These areas are likely to remain flooded for another three or four months, putting those affected at serious risk of disease outbreaks," the OCHA added. The UN usually issues a Flash Appeal during disasters or natural calamities in a country where it sees that the government would have a hard time addressing the immediate needs of the victims. The appeal usually lasts for six months. The UN flash appeal was initially called to meet the urgent needs of one million Filipinos affected by Ondoy, which on Sept. 26 unleashed a record rainfall in a span of six hours, submerging many areas in Metro Manila and outlying provinces in floods and killing more than 330 people. Between 100,000 and 120,000 farming households, or half a million people, lost all of their production and assets, based on the preliminary assessments by the Department of Agriculture and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. The OCHA underscored the importance of the funding to expedite the assistance to Filipinos affected by the tropical cyclones. "Aid agencies have been reporting that funding shortfalls have limited their ability to follow through with humanitarian action plans designed to support life-saving projects and to launch early recovery efforts," the OCHA said. - GMANews.TV