SUMMERSIDE – Until late Tuesday night Nelia Anadia had no idea if her sister was dead or alive.
It wasn’t until she received a Facebook message from a neighbour, back home in the Philippines, that she was able to confirm that her sister is not among the thousands who died a week ago when typhoon Haiyan slammed into the eastern part of that country.
CLICK HERE FOR A RELATED STORY ON TYPHOON HAIYAN
“She’s together with my family,” said an obviously relieved Anadia on Wednesday.
“Until now I was worried … because we don’t have any communication.”
Anadia is part of a small Filipino community in western Prince Edward Island, mostly foreign temporary workers. She has been living in Slemon Park for the past six months and is part of a group of 27 Filipinos working for Acadian Fishermen’s Co-op in the Wellington area.
She lives in a home with a couple of other young women, all of whom have been alternating between not being able to tear themselves from the deluge of news pouring out of their homeland and just wanting to shut it all out and pretend it never happened.
“We feel worried for her,” said Zhena Angeles, one of the other workers living in Slemon Park and a friend of Anadia’s.
“From the time the typhoon happened. She don’t even get to sleep. Just cry or something. We call her to cheer her up – but it’s not enough, it will come into her mind again. It bothers her a lot not knowing anything,” she said.
So when Anadia got word about her sister, it was a cause for celebration for all of them, she added.
But every time the death toll rises, those happy thoughts are tempered by the reality of the magnitude of what’s happened.
Typhoon Haiyan has been reported as the strongest storm to ever make landfall on Earth.
The weather event completely devastated the coastal city of Tacloban and the surrounding areas of the Philippines.
The confirmed death toll was at 2,275 as of Wednesday afternoon and is expected to rise, while critical food, water and medical shortages have been reported throughout the eastern seaboard.
Anadia’s home region, San Sotero, Javier, Leyte is only a two-hour drive from the epicentre of the damage at Tacloban. Her sister went to school in Tacloban, which is why Anadia was so concerned for her safety.
It’s all so much to take in and process, said Fanny Villarama.
“What we feel is heartbreaking. It’s devastating. But it’s getting better, “ said Villarama, a Filipino expat living in Miscouche.
She likes to help out the temporary workers from her home country who filter in and out of the area.
The women in Anadia’s home call her their “second mother.”
And like family, she’s grieved with them and celebrated the little bits of good news they receive.
Good news like the emergency response team and cargo plane full of supplies the Canadian government has sent to the Philippines, as well as the donations Canadians are already making to the Red Cross and other disaster relief organizations.
On behalf of all the Filipinos in their group, Angeles wanted to convey their sincere thanks for those offers of aid.
“Your country, your people, give a big amount of donation – it’s really touching. We really appreciate it,” said Angeles.
“We’re just grateful for your concern,” added Villarama.
None of them are sure when they will be able to contact their loved ones again, but being among people who have shown them compassion and support lessens the burden, they said.
As for Anadia, when asked if there is anything she’d like to say to Canadians about the situation back home, she said simply, “I need their help.”
The Government of Canada has pledged to match donations made to the Canadian Red Cross for the Philippines.
Anyone who would like to donate to the relief effort can do so online at www.redcross.ca (just follow the links) or by calling 1-800-418-1111 and earmarking their donation “Typhoon Haiyan.”
SUMMERSIDE – Until late Tuesday night Nelia Anadia had no idea if her sister was dead or alive.
It wasn’t until she received a Facebook message from a neighbour, back home in the Philippines, that she was able to confirm that her sister is not among the thousands who died a week ago when typhoon Haiyan slammed into the eastern part of that country.
CLICK HERE FOR A RELATED STORY ON TYPHOON HAIYAN
“She’s together with my family,” said an obviously relieved Anadia on Wednesday.
“Until now I was worried … because we don’t have any communication.”
Anadia is part of a small Filipino community in western Prince Edward Island, mostly foreign temporary workers. She has been living in Slemon Park for the past six months and is part of a group of 27 Filipinos working for Acadian Fishermen’s Co-op in the Wellington area.
She lives in a home with a couple of other young women, all of whom have been alternating between not being able to tear themselves from the deluge of news pouring out of their homeland and just wanting to shut it all out and pretend it never happened.
“We feel worried for her,” said Zhena Angeles, one of the other workers living in Slemon Park and a friend of Anadia’s.
“From the time the typhoon happened. She don’t even get to sleep. Just cry or something. We call her to cheer her up – but it’s not enough, it will come into her mind again. It bothers her a lot not knowing anything,” she said.
So when Anadia got word about her sister, it was a cause for celebration for all of them, she added.
But every time the death toll rises, those happy thoughts are tempered by the reality of the magnitude of what’s happened.
Typhoon Haiyan has been reported as the strongest storm to ever make landfall on Earth.
The weather event completely devastated the coastal city of Tacloban and the surrounding areas of the Philippines.
The confirmed death toll was at 2,275 as of Wednesday afternoon and is expected to rise, while critical food, water and medical shortages have been reported throughout the eastern seaboard.
Anadia’s home region, San Sotero, Javier, Leyte is only a two-hour drive from the epicentre of the damage at Tacloban. Her sister went to school in Tacloban, which is why Anadia was so concerned for her safety.
It’s all so much to take in and process, said Fanny Villarama.
“What we feel is heartbreaking. It’s devastating. But it’s getting better, “ said Villarama, a Filipino expat living in Miscouche.
She likes to help out the temporary workers from her home country who filter in and out of the area.
The women in Anadia’s home call her their “second mother.”
And like family, she’s grieved with them and celebrated the little bits of good news they receive.
Good news like the emergency response team and cargo plane full of supplies the Canadian government has sent to the Philippines, as well as the donations Canadians are already making to the Red Cross and other disaster relief organizations.
On behalf of all the Filipinos in their group, Angeles wanted to convey their sincere thanks for those offers of aid.
“Your country, your people, give a big amount of donation – it’s really touching. We really appreciate it,” said Angeles.
“We’re just grateful for your concern,” added Villarama.
None of them are sure when they will be able to contact their loved ones again, but being among people who have shown them compassion and support lessens the burden, they said.
As for Anadia, when asked if there is anything she’d like to say to Canadians about the situation back home, she said simply, “I need their help.”
The Government of Canada has pledged to match donations made to the Canadian Red Cross for the Philippines.
Anyone who would like to donate to the relief effort can do so online at www.redcross.ca (just follow the links) or by calling 1-800-418-1111 and earmarking their donation “Typhoon Haiyan.”
