By Kathy Novak
So much of this past week has been consumed with getting into Tacloban.
The airport was badly damaged, and flights limited; ferries from Cebu to Leyte Province were dependent on good weather to cross; then from the port at Ormoc to Tacloban, it was a journey across a road littered with debris and plagued with security concerns.
It was important to me to get there not just as a journalist, but for personal reasons too. My grandfather’s side of the family is from Leyte. Most live in Tacloban or Palo. My relative, Nestor Dolina, accompanied SBS cameraman, Edoardo Falcione, and me from Manila, and was helping us with our work. At the same time, he was coordinating with family, trying to find out news, get supplies in, and help get loved ones out. Until today, he is still receiving messages from family members who want to be picked up.
On Thursday, we finally managed to get into Tacloban from Cebu on a Royal Australian Air Force C-130. In Cebu, the skies were blue and inside the plane we were sweating from the heat. On the other end of a short flight, the scene was completely different, and horrific.
There was a heavy thunderstorm, and a long queue of people had formed in the rain on the tarmac, waiting to board the aircraft on which we had arrived. The terminal itself didn’t provide much shelter. Much of the roof had been ripped off and crowds of people were getting soaked. There were mothers with tiny babies, elderly people in wheelchairs, others who were obviously injured, hungry and thirsty. We had been on the ground for just minutes and we were already drenched, cold and disoriented. I can only imagine the horror those survivors had felt for days in that environment, having survived the ferocity of the typhoon, and witnessing, first-hand, the scenes that have been broadcast on television for the past week.
And yet, they waited patiently to board the planes that were slowly but steadily transporting survivors out of the disaster area.
I knew how desperate they were for food and water. And there was one moment on the ground that I will never forget.
Because it was raining so hard, the cardboard box we had brought with us filled with food and water broke, and a couple of the water bottles fell on the ground. A woman who was sitting quietly in the rain that was coming through the terminal roof motioned to get my attention, and pointed to the bottle. Many people in her position would have taken the bottle for themselves. Maybe it was the heavily-armed security personnel keeping order at the airport. Maybe it was her character and the kind of generosity that one finds everywhere in the Philippines. Whatever it was, it was incredible.
Among the misery and hopelessness in that airport, there was the odd smile. There’s a sense of humour and a pragmatism here that gets people through the most challenging situations.
Everyone seems to accept the reality surrounding the aftermath of this Typhoon. If you know people in Leyte there is a good chance you have lost someone.
Survivors wait for a military plane that will carry them to Manila at Tacloban airport on November 15. (Getty)
When people asked about our family, the response from my mother was “Yes, thank God everyone is ok, except for one cousin who passed away.”
That is not to diminish the importance of the life of my great-uncle’s daughter. Our family is, of course, mourning her loss. It is an expression of how grateful we feel that more were not lost, and how lucky our family was compared to so many others.
Now, those who survived are trying to come to terms with what they have witnessed, and contemplating how they can begin to start again.
A cousin, who got out of Tacloban and is now in Manila, told my mother how depressing it is to see the normality of life and the glamourous items in the shops, knowing she has been left with nothing.
Nestor says there is nothing left for people in Tacloban. Many are just wanting to get out. Others are choosing to stay, and eventually they will rebuild.
If you are watching all of these events unfolding and wondering how you can help, donate money to the various reputable aid organisations working to get aid to those who need it. I have met some of the wonderful volunteers here in the Philippines working in shocking conditions. Your money will be helping them help desperate people. There’s a list of these organisations on our website.
Another thing you can do is come here for a holiday. This is a beautiful country that has been hit by a devastating natural disaster. It’s a country that depends so much on its tourism, and in the wake of this typhoon and last month’s earthquake in Bohol, tourists are understandably cancelling their plans.
But the many Filipinos who rely on the industry for their livelihoods need your help too. We were staying in a hotel in Cebu, and the man helping us with our bags has a brother in Tacloban, and was still waiting for news. Still, he was working, with a smile on his face. That is the kind of resilience and hospitality you can expect when you come here. I assure you, you’ll love it. And the country will happily welcome you for a visit.
