Pope had different homily for Tacloban Mass

TACLOBAN - Pope Francis' message for typhoon victims in Tacloban on Saturday was very different from the homily he had prepared before the outdoor Mass.

According to a Vatican report, the Pope set aside his prepared homily in English and spoke from his heart in his native Spanish to thousands of victims of typhoon Yolanda who braved wind and rain to take part in the liturgy at the Tacloban airport.

Below is a transcript of the Holy Father's remarks, which were translated on-site by one of the ministers in the sanctuary.

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We have a high priest who is capable of sympathising with our weaknesses. Jesus is like us. Jesus lived like us and is the same us in every respect, except sin because he was not a sinner. But to be more like us he assumed our condition and our sin. He made himself into sin. This is what St Paul tells us. And Jesus always goes before us and when we pass an experience, a cross, he passed there before us. And if today we find ourselves here 14 months afterwards, 14 months precisely after the Typhoon Yolanda hit, it is because we have the security of knowing we will not weaken in our faith because Jesus has been here before us. In his Passion he assumed all our pain. Therefore he is capable of understanding us, as we heard in the first reading.

I’d like to tell you something close to my heart. When I saw from Rome that catastrophe I had to be here. And on those very days I decided to come here. I am here to be with you – a little bit late, but I’m here. I have come to tell you that Jesus is Lord. And he never lets us down. Father, you might say to me, I was let down because I have lost so many things, my house, my livelihood. It’s true if you say that and I respect those sentiments. But Jesus is there, nailed to the cross, and from there he does not let us down. He was consecrated as Lord on that throne and there he experienced all the calamities that we experience. Jesus is Lord. And the Lord from the cross is there for you. In everything the same as us. That is why we have a Lord who cries with us and walks with us in the most difficult moments of life.

So many of you have lost everything. I don’t know what to say to you. But the Lord does know what to say to you. Some of you have lost part of your families. All I can do is keep silence and walk with you all with my silent heart. Many of you have asked the Lord – why lord? And to each of you, to your heart, Christ responds with his heart from the cross. I have no more words for you. Let us look to Christ. He is the lord. He understands us because he underwent all the trials that we, that you, have experienced. And beside the cross was his Mother. We are like a little child in the moments when we have so much pain and no longer understand anything. All we can do is grab hold of her hand firmly and say “Mommy” - like a child does when it is afraid. It is perhaps the only words we can say in difficult times – “Mommy”.

Let us respect a moment of silence together and look to Christ on the cross. He understands us because he endured everything. Let us look to our Mother and, like a little child, let us hold onto her mantle and with a true heart say – “Mother”. In silence, tell your Mother what you feel in your heart. Let us know that we have a Mother, Mary, and a great Brother, Jesus. We are not alone. We also have many brothers who in this moment of catastrophe came to help. And we too, because of this, we feel more like brothers and sisters because we helped each other.

This is what comes from my heart. Forgive me if I have no other words to express myself. Please know that Jesus never lets you down. Know that the tenderness of Mary never lets you down. And holding onto her mantle and with the power that cones from Jesus’ love on the cross, let us move forward and walk together as brothers and sisters in the Lord.

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Below is the prepared text of the Pope's Homily that was no delivered:

Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis
Holy Mass
Tacloban, Airport Area
17 January 2015

What words of consolation we have just heard! Once again, we have been told that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, our Savior, our high priest who brings us mercy, grace and help in all our needs (cf. Heb 4:14-16). He heals our wounds, he forgives our sins, and he calls us, as he did Saint Matthew (cf. Mk 2:14), to be his disciples. Let us praise him for his love, his mercy and his compassion. Let us praise our great God!

I thank the Lord Jesus that we can be together this morning. I have come to be with you, in this city which was ravaged by Typhoon Yolanda fourteen months ago. I bring to you the love of a father, the prayers of the entire Church, the promise that you are not forgotten as you continue to rebuild. Here, the strongest storm ever recorded on earth was overcome by the strongest force in the universe: God’s love. We are here this morning to bear witness to that love, to its power to transform death and destruction into life and community. Christ’s resurrection, which we celebrate at this Mass, is our hope and a reality which we experience even now. We know that the resurrection comes only after the cross, the cross which you have borne with faith, dignity and God-given strength.

We come together above all to pray for those who died, those who are still missing and those who were injured. We lift up to God the souls of the dead, our mothers, fathers, sons and daughters, family, friends and neighbors. We can be confident that, in coming into the presence of God, they have encountered mercy and peace (cf. Heb 4:16). There remains much sadness because of their absence. For you who knew and loved them – and love them still – the pain of losing them is real. But let us look with the eyes of faith to the future. Our sadness is a seed which will one day bear fruit in the joy which our Lord has promised to those who trust in his words: “Blessed are you who mourn, for you will be comforted” (cf. Mt 5:4).
We have also come together this morning to give thanks to God for his help in time of need. God has been your strength in these very difficult months. There has been great loss of life, suffering, and destruction. Yet we are still able to gather and to thank him. We know that he cares for us, that in Jesus his Son, we have a high priest who is able to sympathize with us (cf. Heb 4:15), who suffers with us. God’s com-passion, his suffering with us, gives eternal meaning and value to our struggles. Your desire to thank him for every grace and blessing, even when you have lost so much, is not only a triumph of the resilience and strength of the Filipino people; it is also a sign of God’s goodness, his closeness, his tenderness, his saving power.

We also give thanks to Almighty God for so much that has been done to help, to rebuild, to assist in these months of unprecedented need. I think in the first place of those who welcomed and housed the great number of displaced families, elderly, and youth. How hard it is to flee one’s home and livelihood! We thank those who have taken care of the homeless, the orphaned and the destitute. Priests, and men and women religious, gave as much as they could. To those of you who housed and fed people seeking safety, in churches, convents, rectories, and who continue to assist those still struggling, I thank you. You are a credit to the Church. You are the pride of your nation. I personally thank each one of you. For whatever you did for the least of Christ’s brothers and sisters, you did for him (cf. Mt 25:41).

At this Mass we wish also to thank God for the good men and women who served as rescue and relief workers. We thank him for the many people around the world who generously gave of their time, money and goods. Countries, organizations and individuals across the globe put the needy first; it is an example that should be followed. I ask government leaders, international agencies, benefactors and people of goodwill not to give up. There is much that remains to be done. Though the headlines have changed, the needs continue.

Today’s first reading, from the Letter to the Hebrews, urges us to hold fast in our confession, to persevere in our faith, to draw near with confidence to the throne of God’s grace (cf. Heb 4:16). These words have a special resonance in this place. Amid great suffering you never ceased to confess the victory of the cross, the triumph of God’s love. You have seen the power of that love revealed in the generosity of so many people and in so many small miracles of goodness. But you have also seen, in the profiteering, the looting and the failed responses to this great human drama, so many tragic signs of the evil from which Christ came to save us. Let us pray that this, too, will lead us to greater trust in the power of God’s grace to overcome sin and selfishness. Let us pray in particular that it will make everyone more sensitive to the cry of our brothers and sisters in need. Let us pray that it will lead to a rejection of all forms of injustice and corruption which, by stealing from the poor, poison the very roots of society.

Dear brothers and sisters, throughout this ordeal you have felt the grace of God in a special way through the presence and loving care of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Perpetual Help. She is our Mother. May she help you to persevere in faith and hope, and to reach out to all in need. And with Saints Lorenzo Ruiz and Pedro Calungsod and all the saints, may she continue to implore God’s mercy and loving compassion for this country, and for all the beloved Filipino people. Amen

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Cyclone could cancel Pope's Leyte visit, says exec

MANILA – A member of the Papal Visit Executive Committee said bad weather may force the cancellation of Pope Francis' visit to Leyte.

Ambassador Marciano Paynor, member of the Papal Visit Executive Committee, said the approaching cyclone east of the Visayas-Mindanao region has cast uncertainty on the pope's January 17 visit to Yolanda-ravaged Tacloban.

''Talagang hindi natin masasabi, pero siyempre ang pinaka (concern) nga is iyung weather ho,'' Paynor told dzMM.

''Kung masyadong malakas ang ulan o hangin, hindi pwedeng mag-landing ang eroplano sa Tacloban. Iyun ang pwedeng makaapekto. Pero pinag-darasal natin na huwag mangyari iyon."

The pope's visit to the typhoon-stricken region is considered the most important part of his visit to the Philippines, which carries the theme ''Mercy and Compassion''.

The pope is scheduled to celebrate Mass at the Tacloban airport, considered the ground zero for Yolanda, and have lunch with 30 survivors of the super typhoon and the destructive Bohol earthquake.

Cyclone
State weather bureau PAGASA said a tropical depression was spotted 1,610 kilometers east of Mindanao as of 4 a.m.

The tropical depression was packing maximum sustained winds of 55 kilometers per hour and was moving west northwest at 19 kph.

PAGASA weather forecaster Jori Loiz told dzMM that the tropical depression will enter the Philippine area of responsibility between Wednesday evening and Thursday morning, at which point it will be locally named ''Amang''.

Loiz said the cyclone might re-curve due to the high pressure area. He, however, said even if the cyclone re-curves, it's trough or outer cloudbands will still bring rains over Visayas and Mindanao.

PAGASA said by Friday (January 16), Tacloban City will experience light rains as the tropical cyclone moves closer to the country.

By Saturday (January 17), light to moderate rains and moderate to strong winds will prevail over Tacloban and thunderstorms are likely to occur.

People surge
Meanwhile, Pasig Bishop Mylo Vergara, head of the media committee for the papal visit to the Philippines, said people who want to bring children to any of the papal events in the Philippines, especially in the pope's mass in Luneta, should not be discouraged from doing so.

''Everyone should go. I think even some elderlies are excited to go there. There will be persons with disbailities who would be attending the mass, so why not?" he told ANC's Headstart.

Citing the annual Feast of the Black Nazarene, Vergara noted the Philippines is no stranger to events that see a large number of people converging in one place.

''Ang poong nazareno happens every year. It is something that we look forward to. It is always asked of me, are you afraid of the people surge? Eh people surge na yung poong nazareno hindi ba? And things fall into place afterwards. We do the best in security, in management of the crowd,'' he said.

Nearly 40,000 soldiers and police are being deployed to protect the pontiff during his five-day trip to the Philippines, a majority Catholic nation where attempts have been made to kill visiting popes twice before.

"For this year, this will be the greatest security nightmare that we can have," Philippine military chief General Gregorio Catapang said as he readied his troops for the pontiff's arrival.

Authorities have stated the huge crowds of devout Catholics are their main worry, with up to six million people expected for a mass in Manila on Sunday. – with Agence France-Presse

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Globe vows to restore network 'as soon as weather permits'

Weather unfavorable for actual field work, company says

MANILA -- Telco giant Globe Telecom said Sunday its network operations team has initiated "service restoration process" in areas affected by Typhoon Ruby.

In a statement, the company said that as of 2 p.m. on Sunday, this process "mainly involves assessment of the typhoon’s impact on network infrastructure as weather remains unfavorable for field personnel to do actual field work."

Still, the company’s operations team in Visayas is ready to address network concerns brought by Typhoon Ruby, weather permitting, senior vice-president for corporate communications Yoly Crisanto said in the statement.

“The safety of our employees is our main priority at any given time. Needless to say, the company is ready to execute service restoration as soon as weather permits. We’re hoping to undertake actual field work by tomorrow (Monday),” she said.

Globe said initial assessment indicates there are no major outages caused by Typhoon Ruby, which made landfall in Eastern Samar Saturday night.

Service disruptions were due mostly to power outages and "misalignment of antennas" following strong winds brought by the typhoon, Crisanto said.

As part of its preparation for Typhoon Ruby, Globe implemented "preemptive measures" that include a temporary service interruption of mobile coverage in Eastern Samar.

"Full restoration may be completed within a 48-hour period after recovery efforts are initiated," the statement said.

As of 12 noon on Sunday, Globe said service interruptions have been monitored in some areas in the provinces of Biliran, Eastern Samar, Northern Samar, Leyte, Southern Leyte and Western Samar.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Millions evacuate as 'Ruby' bears down on PH

TACLOBAN  -- Millions of people in the Philippines began seeking shelter in churches, schools and other makeshift evacuation centers on Friday as a monster typhoon bore down on the disaster-weary nation.

The storm, which would be the strongest to hit the Southeast Asian archipelago this year, is expected to impact more than half the nation including communities devastated by Super Typhoon Haiyan last year.

Authorities said more than 500,000 families, or about 2.5 million people, in the eastern Philippines would be evacuated ahead of Hagupit's expected landfall on Saturday night or Sunday.

"Everyone here is gripped with fear," Rita Villadolid, 39, told AFP as she sat with her family and hundreds of other people inside a sports stadium in Tacloban, one of the cities still yet to recover from Haiyan.

Elsewhere in Tacloban, a coastal city of 220,000 people on the eastern island of Leyte, people began flooding into churches and schools with little more than bags of clothes.

Haiyan, the strongest storm ever recorded on land with winds of 315 kilometers (195 miles) an hour, killed or left missing more than 7,350 people as it tore across the central Philippines last year.

Hagupit was generating winds of 215 kilometers (133 miles) an hour on Friday as it tracked towards the Philippines from the Pacific Ocean.

The US Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Center on Friday downgraded Hagupit from the maximum super typhoon category to typhoon status.

DIRECT HIT

But this would still make Hagupit the strongest storm to hit the Philippines this year, and it would also bring storm surges more than one storey high to many coastal areas, according to state weather agency Pagasa.

In the eastern region of Bicol alone, the government was aiming to move 500,000 families, about half the local population, into evacuation centers, regional civil defense director Bernardo Alejandro told AFP.

"All resources are being mobilised," Alejandro said, adding evacuations had begun on Friday.

He said local government and military trucks were being deployed to transport people to the shelters.

Bicol is a farming and fishing region slightly to the north of Leyte and other areas that were the worst hit by Haiyan last year.

However Hagupit's weather band was 700 kilometers wide and would affect 55 of the nation's 85 provinces, including Leyte, according to Pagasa.

Metro Manila, the nation's capital with a population of more than 12 million people, could also suffer a direct hit, according to the US Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Center.

The local Pagasa monitoring agency, which had a slightly different forecast for Hagupit, said the capital would not be directly in the storm's path.

But the various mayors of the capital held an emergency meeting on Friday to begin preparations for expected torrid weather on Monday.

The Philippines is often the first major landmass hit by typhoons and major tropical storms that are created in the Pacific Ocean. It endures about 20 major storms a year, many of them deadly.

The previous strongest storm this year was Rammasun, which killed more than 100 people when it cut across Manila and other parts of the main island of Luzon in July.

The Philippines, a developing nation of 100 million people, has in recent years faced unusually strong storms that scientists have warned are linked to climate change.

More than 1,900 people were left dead or missing in December 2012 after Typhoon Bopha hit the southern Philippine island of Mindanao, an area that does not normally experience major storms.

In December 2011, 1,268 people were killed when Tropical Storm Washi caused massive flooding in another part of Mindanao.

Haiyan, Bopha and Washi were the world's deadliest storms of the past three years.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Daniel, mom honored as 'Yolanda heroes'

MANILA – Kapamilya actor Daniel Padilla and his mother, former actress Karla Estrada, were among those honored at the “Handumanan: Pasasalamat sa mga Bayani ng Haiyan,” which was held last Friday at the Quezon Memorial Circle.

The recognition was for their efforts in reaching out to the survivors of super typhoon Yolanda when it battered some parts of the country in November last year.

In an interview with “The Buzz” which was aired on Sunday, Padilla said it is overwhelming when other people honor your efforts in helping those affected by the super typhoon.

“Masarap ang pakiramdam. Tumutulong ka na may award ka pa,” he said.

Last June, Padilla and Estrada mounted a free concert in Tacloban to bring happiness to those who were devastated by Yolanda.

“Plinano naming mag-ina 'yung concert para mapasaya namin ang mga kababayan namin and ito lahat galing sa aming dalawa lang talaga. Siyempre mayroong mga tumulong sa atin but this is a free concert para sa mga victims ng Yolanda all over Region 8 na gaganapin natin sa grandstand sa Tacloban City,” Estrada said in a past interview.

Both said they wanted to entertain the people in Tacloban City so they could somehow forget the pain and hardships they are going through.

According to an article by Star Cinema, the Handumanan event “aimed to honor all the good Samaritans on the aftermath of Yolanda.”

The project is part of former Senator Panfilo Lascon’s task as a rehabilitation czar for the Haiyan Disaster Governance Initiative.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Esquire explains Mar cover photo on 'Yolanda' issue

MANILA - Esquire Philippines magazine finally cleared the air about its "Yolanda" issue cover photo featuring Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas after it drew flak from social media users.

Esquire posted on Facebook a copy of the cover of its latest issue last Thursday. The cover photo shows Roxas smiling, waving his hand while sitting on piles of wood. The caption beside the photo reads: "Hello from Tacloban."





Facebook users, especially those from the "Yolanda"-hit city of Tacloban, quickly reacted to the Esquire cover photo, calling it an "insult" and a "sick joke."

"Are you mocking us Taclobanons by putting that man's face on the cover?" asked Cecile Therese Dueñas.

"Is this a sick joke? You bring this cover to Leyte and we will burn it," warned Neil Warren Chu.

"The Warays will use the cover as toilet paper," Prospero Pulma added.

In response, Esquire on Sunday released a statement on Facebook, explaining their choice of cover the issue dedicated to "dignify the memory of those lost, and the pain of those left behind in Tacloban City."

The magazine said its writers and photographers revisited Tacloban in order to present the tragedy that are still ongoing after "Yolanda" and to also "sift the facts" on the government's response.

"Secretary Mar Roxas is on the cover as a symbol of the national government response. Nothing less or more. We were certainly not paid or persuaded to put him on the cover. (The photo itself was taken a year ago, at the Tacloban port; this was not from a specially arranged Esquire shoot and is not to be misconstrued as an endorsement.)" it said.

Esquire further explained that their goal in the "Yolanda" issue is to draw attention to the situation in Tacloban.



Last year, just weeks after "Yolanda" hit central Philippines, Roxas drew flak when he was caught on video telling Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez, "You have to understand, you are a Romualdez and the President is an Aquino."

Roxas, in defense, said the clip was spliced and it was trying to deceive people.

After the incident, he and Romualdez engaged in word war which eventually ended at a Congressional Oversight Committee on the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management hearing.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Prayers, tears in Philippines one year after super typhoon

TACLOBAN, Philippines - Survivors of the strongest typhoon ever to hit land descended on mass graves Saturday to mark one year since the storm devastated the central Philippines and condemned millions to deeper poverty.

Super Typhoon Haiyan claimed more than 7,350 lives as it swept in off the Pacific Ocean, with its record winds and once-in-a-generation storm surges flattening entire towns.

The typhoon tore across a corridor of islands where about 14 million people lived in farming and fishing communities that were already among the nation's poorest.

The rebuilding effort has been painfully slow for most survivors, with millions poorer and many dangerously exposed to the next big storm as they still live in shanty homes along coastal areas.

In an outpouring of grief, tens of thousands marched to the grave sites under the hot sun on Saturday to offer flowers, light candles and say prayers.

Josephine Crisostomo's three children died during the storm, including her youngest, who would have turned two years old on Sunday.

"I miss my children terribly, especially John Dave who would have celebrated his birthday tomorrow... I miss you, son, I love you so much," Crisostomo, 41, said at one of the mass graves in the outskirts of badly-hit Tacloban city.

Using felt-tip pens, mourners wrote names of those who died on the hundreds of white crosses planted on parched earth in symbolic gestures as the more than 2,000 people buried there had not been identified.

"I am looking for my brother, but his name is not on the list of those buried here," Elena Olendan, 50, told AFP, her eyes welling with tears, as she wandered around the grave site, about the size of six basketball courts.

Olendan had not reported her 60-year-old brother, Antonio, as missing when Haiyan struck. She found a cross on the far end of the mass grave and wrote her brother's name on it.

- National day of prayer -

The Philippines is a mainly Catholic country and many people in the typhoon zones, as well as across the nation, attended special church services.

The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines declared Saturday a national day of prayer, and church bells across the nation would ring at 6:00 pm to remember those who died or suffered in the storm.

The build-up to the anniversary had focused renewed attention on the pace of the reconstruction effort, with President Benigno Aquino's government criticized by many for a perceived lack of urgency.

Roughly one million people need to be moved away from coastal areas that are deemed vulnerable to storm surges, according to a 160-billion-peso ($3.6-billion) government master plan for rebuilding the typhoon zones.

However those plans have already fallen behind schedule, delayed by problems in finding new land that is safe and suitable for 205,000 new homes.

In a speech at the typhoon-hit town of Guiuan on Friday, Aquino defended the pace of the reconstruction program, saying he was determined to ensure it was carried out correctly rather than rushing.

"Curse me, criticize me but I believe I must do the right thing," Aquino said.

"I am impatient like everyone else but I have to stress that we can't rebuild haphazardly. We have to build back better... let's get it right the first time and the benefits should be permanent."

Aquino also cited international aid agencies as saying post-Haiyan recovery efforts were moving faster compared with programs in Indonesia's Banda Aceh after it was hit by mega-tsunami waves in 2004.

And while millions endure Haiyan-exacerbated poverty, there has been some remarkable progress from a year ago as international aid agencies have pumped hundreds of millions of dollars into the region.

Some of the big successes of the campaign have been the restoration of electricity within a few months, quick replanting of crops and sanitation programs that prevented major outbreaks of killer diseases.

Tacloban again resembles many other chaotic Philippine cities, with traffic jams, busy market stalls and packed shopping malls.

In the countryside, lush green paddies are testament to successful rice planting campaigns that have sustained millions.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Throwback: Atom Araullo remembers Yolanda's wrath

TACLOBAN - ABS-CBN correspondent Atom Araullo was the last reporter to give an update on the weather condition in Tacloban before it was ravaged by super typhoon Yolanda on November 8, 2013.

This is what he saw.

ABS-CBN UMAGANG KAY GANDA, November 7, 2014

Watch the full episode in iWant TV or TFC

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Muted revelry in Tacloban as global fireworks usher in 2014

MANILA, Philippines – Tacloban was a picture of a city trying to get back to its feet as the world ushered in 2014 Tuesday night.

Residents were lining up to buy bread or cakes; some were queuing for fruits. Nearing midnight, a concert by singer Rico Blanco, whose family hails from Leyte province, is being prepared. But not all is New Year’s Eve as usual.

“Hindi rin mapigilan ang mga residente na salubungin ang Bagong Taon sa nakasanayang paraan tulad ng pagpapaputok at paghahanda,” reporter Jenette Ruedas said in her report for TV Patrol.

Ruedas likened Tacloban City streets to Divisoria, a strip bustling with food stalls and ambulant vendors with various wares in downtown Manila. But the wrath of typhoon Yolanda, which ripped through Tacloban and nearby cities November 8, is still palpable.

“Mabenta ang torotot bagamat may ilan pa ring nagbebenta ng paputok kahit hindi gaanong mabili,” Ruedas said.

Officials were preparing a midnight fireworks display to try to boost spirits, despite nearly 8,000 dead or missing.

Aid agencies are also organizing free concerts or distributing food for the traditional New Year's Eve dinner, an Agence France Press reporter said.

In the small, ruined farming village of San Isidro, residents are still grappling with the overpowering stench of death as 1,400 corpses stacked in black body bags lay in a field, more than seven weeks after the tragedy.

In any case, Taclobanons are hopeful. They are scheduled to see a fireworks display in the city hall after the concert, Ruedas said.

World welcomes 2014

Elsewhere in the world, traditional yearend fireworks that would usher in the new year began lighting up the skies of some of the world’s biggest landmarks.

Sydney kicked off a promised unprecedented spectacular to mark New Year celebrations, the first in a wave of pyrotechnics to usher in 2014 from Hong Kong to world record-chasing Dubai.

Tonnes of explosives were set to light up Australia's biggest city, with fireworks shooting off the Opera House for the first time in more than 10 years as part of the December 31 extravaganza, focused on the Harbour Bridge.

Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore said the Aus$6 million show ($5.4 million), themed "Shine", was expected to attract 1.6 million spectators.

"We are ready to host the world's best New Year's Eve on the world's most beautiful harbour," Moore told reporters earlier in the day.

The first of a record three fireworks displays took place three hours before midnight, as part of the show Moore promised would be "bigger than ever", showering color over Sydney Harbour.

Dubai’s record-breaking display

Dubai is hoping to break the Guinness World Record for the largest display, pledging to set off more than 400,000 fireworks. Kuwait set the mark in 2011 with an hour-long blast of 77,282 fireworks.

Tonga, located near the international dateline, was one of the first nations to greet 2014, holding a prayer festival that culminates with a bamboo "cannon" fired into the air.

Hong Kong’s countdown

Cities across Asia will be next to hail the New Year, with Hong Kong boasting the biggest-ever countdown show for the Chinese city.

Fireworks will soar from skyscrapers and a one-kilometer line of barges along Victoria Harbour in a "wish upon a star" tourism board show.

In Japan, shoppers were busy buying crabs, tuna sashimi and other delicacies to feast in the New Year, with noodle shops doing an especially brisk trade.

Eating noodles on New Year's Eve is regarded in Japan as a symbolic act to wish for a long life.

Millions of people were due to visit shrines and temples through to early morning in massive, yet quiet tradition, paying their first annual respects and praying for peace for relatives.

Seoul will ring in 2014 with a ritual clanging of the city's 15th-century bronze bell 33 times, reflecting the ancient practice for marking a new year.

Elsewhere in Asia…

In Singapore, people will flock to the financial district for fireworks while thousands of white spheres will be launched to bob on Marina Bay, holding residents' wishes for 2014.

Jakarta has set up 12 city center stages for performances to showcase the vast archipelago's kaleidoscope of cultures.

However, 6,500 police will be out to ensure security amid warnings that extremists in the Muslim-majority nation may target the celebrations, prompting travel warnings from countries including neighboring Australia.

In Indonesia's sharia stronghold of Banda Aceh, Islamic police seized thousands of firecrackers and cardboard trumpets after the city administration banned New Year's Eve celebrations for the first time.

"There should be no activity whatsoever to celebrate the turn of the year," senior Banda Aceh sharia police official Reza Kamilin said after the clerical Ulema Consultative Assembly said New Year's celebrations or wishing someone "Merry Christmas" was "haram" (forbidden) in the city.

In Mumbai, revelers celebrated a court victory over the local police force, which pushed back closing time in bars and restaurants to 5 a.m. instead of 1:30 a.m.

Last year India cancelled most of its official New Year's celebrations after the fatal gangrape of a student on a New Delhi bus on December 16, which sparked protests and a year of introspection about women's rights.

Revelers and a memorial

In Rio de Janeiro, authorities are predicting 2.3 million people -- a third of them tourists -- will crowd Copacabana Beach for fireworks and pop music.

Major spectaculars will also light up Moscow's Red Square, Berlin's Brandenburg Gate and central London when Big Ben chimes midnight.

An expected one million revelers will gather in New York to mark the stroke of midnight and the traditional New Year's Eve ball-drop over Times Square.

Cape Town will have a free concert with fireworks and a 3D tribute to Nelson Mandela who died on December 5.

Images from the anti-apartheid hero's life will be projected onto City Hall where he gave his first speech after release from 27 years in prison in 1990. -- with report from Agence France-Presse

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

US increases Philippine typhoon aid

TACLOBAN - The United States pledged an additional $10 million in aid on Monday to help the Philippines recover in the aftermath of super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan).

This brings the total US humanitarian aid to more than $37 million.

USAID's Nancy Lindborg during a briefing in Tacloban City airport confirmed the increase.

"President Obama said we were here and that more help was coming so I'm pleased to announce today an additional 10 million dollars that will bring the U.S. commitment to 37 million dollars and this will enable us to continue to move ahead with our help on things like the water system, on the logistics," she said.

"You know, from the perspective of people who have lost everything aid never gets there fast enough, but things moved pretty quickly here. I mean, we had people, supplies prepositioned in front of the storm, we were working with the government, things started flowing on Sunday and Monday," she said.

About 50 U.S. ships and aircraft have been mobilized in the disaster zone, including 10 C-130 transport planes, 12 V-22 Ospreys and 14 Sea Hawk helicopters air-dropping supplies from an aircraft carrier.

As U.S. ships deliver food, water and medicine, they are also delivering goodwill that could ease the way for the United States to strengthen its often-controversial military presence in one of Southeast Asia's most strategic countries.

The Philippines is one of Washington's closest allies in Asia and a crucial partner in President Barack Obama's strategy to rebalance U.S. military forces towards the region to counter the rising influence of China.

The United States sent the nuclear-powered USS George Washington aircraft carrier to lead relief efforts after Typhoon Haiyan killed at least 3,900 people on November 8, leaving many survivors dazed and without food a water for days.

The United States and the Philippines are in the middle of negotiations to increase a rotational presence of U.S. forces in the country, deploying aircraft, ships, supplies and troops for humanitarian and maritime security operations.

The widening military cooperation, that includes the use of local bases for temporary deployment, signals rapidly warming security relations after Manila put an end to U.S. military bases in 1992. Manila later allowed the return of American troops for training and joint exercises. The new agreement is expected to expand these activities.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Fil-Ams from Tacloban hold vigil for typhoon victims

CARSON, California – At a special mass vigil, Filipinos with ties to the Visayas had their loved ones in their thoughts offering prayers for the deceased, missing and those fighting to survive.

"My younger sister, Celesty, who is still unaccounted for, and also my elder brother that died from drowning," said Edwin Tiu of the Tacloban Association of Southern California.

"One cousin is missing. We still don't have any word on him, but I was just told today the Mendiola clan in Tacloban, not one of them has been found yet and that really saddens me so much," said Fleur Mendiola from Tanauan in Leyte.

Susan Urbayan David said "We haven't heard from Perla Afable, and from Teresita Gonzales and their families."

The association held a prayer vigil in Carson, California helping bring some ease to Filipinos worrying over victims if typhoon Yolanda.

Many of the association's 200 members have friends and family members missing, or dead. Making matters worse are the reports of looting, and the slow relief efforts.

Edna Asuncion said her family has been accounted for but has no food, water, medical supplies, and dead bodies scattered throughout the town. She continues to have concerns for their health.

"I am sad to say that our government is there to help but the help is slow in coming. I'm sure they are helping in everything that they can do but it's very very slow. We need them right now not tomorrow," said Asuncion.

"We are wondering why the Armed Forces of the Philippines has not been mobilized to maintain peace over there and to help in the distribution of relief goods," said Ramon Duarte.

The highest ranking Filipino in the US Catholic Church in Los Angeles, Bishop Oscar Solis had also released a statement and plea for help to the nation's largest Filipino Catholic community.

"I personally appeal to all our pastors and communities for compassion as well as immediate action in the spirit of Christian unity," he said.

With communication still slow and media reports depicting more hardships, Filipino-Americans with Tacloban roots believe the power of prayer is the one certainty that will help them and their loved ones cope with the tragedy.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

UN: We are dismayed for people of Visayas

MANILA - United Nations Humanitarian Chief Valerie Amos called for better coordination in the relief work in areas devastated by super typhoon Yolanda.

Amos said the humanitarian effort is a "major, major operation."

"What we're doing now we just need more of it: more supplies, more people on the ground, better coordination."

Amos spoke to media after arriving from Tacloban City.

She conceded the response to the disaster has been slow, pointing out that the primary responders to the disaster, the local government, are themselves victims.

"I was in Tacloban yesterday. The city is totally devastated. It was terrible to see thousands of people at the airport hoping to leave. People in the city are concerned they have not yet had food or water," she said.

"It hasn't moved fast enough.”

Amos' comments came as international media slammed the Philippine government's response to the disaster.

Amos confirmed the relief effort is "significantly challenged" noting there is "no fuel, lack of trucks to get supplies from airport to people who need it, not just in Tacloban, but people in outlying areas."

Amos noted there is now frustration on the ground.

"People are frustrated they can’t do more because of challenges. I'm impatient. [But we] try to make sure we overcome those challenges. The local government has been decimated."

Until 2 days ago, she said the Tacloban airport did not have runway lights and could not operate all hours of the day. "I completely understand the frustration, we should have been able to do better. I recognize the reasons…People need basic necessities of life"

Dismayed

She added: "I'm extremely dismayed for the people of Tacloban."

People are finding it difficult to get on with their lives, she said.

Amos related she saw personally how people are traumatized, even as they are trying to rebuild their lives.

She recalled seeing people trying to find water to wash clothes. "I saw all of these myself. We need to do more. We need to have the aid coming in, not just to Tacloban. Cebu is a hub for us, which again can be used. We have a lot of donors: the US, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan offering air assets, financial support. We are going to get more people on the ground. Those numbers have gone up."

Amos however quickly pointed out that this slow response is changing, noting more aid and equipment have arrived.

"I was pleased to see we're scaling up operations."

Cut them some slack

Amos and other UN officials, however, wants to cut the government some slack. "I met the task team, I met 3 secretaries from the government who have been there and are themselves pulling together, I met the mayor who is distraught by what happened. I met local congressman. Everyone has same objective.”

Amos was with David Carden, head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Carden said, "I'd say government has been severely affected. It's a super-super typhoon, off the charts. No one is unaffected."

In an earlier address to the media, Amos noted that the storm surge in Tacloban destroyed almost every building there.

“The situation is dismal, those who have been able to leave, have done so, many more are trying. People are extremely vulnerable and desperate for help. We need to get assistance to them now. Ensuring a faster delivery is our immediate priority,” she said.

“Today and over the coming days, things will get better as logistical capacity increases and facilities at the airport continue to improve," she added.

Amos said there is an urgent need to ensure access to clean drinking water and basic sanitation services. She said there is a need for a family-tracing service.

Amos also reminded everyone that Tacloban isn't the only area affected by Yolanda. "Other regions suffered severe losses and damage and have not fallen off our priority list."

Amos also reassured the government of the international community's support.

She also paid tribute to the resiliency of the Filipino.

"Yesterday, I saw it personally. People with absolutely nothing are doing their best to regain some degree of normality. We all must do much more now to ensure they receive the help they desperately need and the support required to rebuild their lives."

Based on UN figures, super typhoon Yolanda has affected 11.5 million people, displacing about 545,000. Around 30% of them are outside evacuation sites, while 70% are in evacuation centers.

A total of $301 million is needed, but only 14% has been funded.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Australia raises donation to P1.2-B for typhoon victims

MANILA – The Australian Government has increased its contribution to P1.2 billion (A$30 million) for the recovery efforts in areas ravaged by super typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan) in the Philippines, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced.

The announcement of the additional P820 million (A$20 million) comes on the back of Australia’s immediate response of P15.5 million (A$390,500), announced by Australia’s Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, which she rapidly increased to P410 million (A$10 million) as reports of the devastation started to filter through.

The additional funds will be used to address serious nutrition, child health and protection needs, purchase emergency foods and provide logistic support and non-food items.

"Providing safe drinking water and power is now critical," Abbott said. “The Australian Defense Force is preparing to provide water purification systems and power generators to Tacloban over the coming days.”

Australia’s further contribution will include:

P530 million (A$13 million) to the United Nations Flash Appeal;
P530 million (A$13 million) to be provided through Australian non-government organizations and their partners on the ground for immediate life-saving assistance;
P82 million (A$2 million) for the urgent deployment of an Australian medical assistance team (AusMAT);
P41 million (A$1 million) for non-food items such as tarpaulins, sleeping mats, mosquito nets, water containers and health and hygiene kits to assist families affected by this disaster; and
P41 million (A$1 million) to be provided to the Australian Federal Police to provide disaster management specialists.
The 2 Royal Australian Air Force aircraft, a C-17A Globemaster and a C-130J Hercules deployed by Australia have already arrived in the Philippines. Both are transporting Australian doctors, nurses, paramedics, other medical specialists, and ADF logistic support staff. The C-130J will transfer the medical personnel and equipment from Cebu to Tacloban.

The AusMAT arrived on an ADF C17 flight from Darwin, Australia on Wednesday and will begin work in the coming days. It includes 12 doctors, 14 nurses, three paramedics, a radiographer, a pharmacist and six logisticians. ADF has also assigned an additional RAAF C-130J Hercules and stands ready to deploy a second C-17A Globemaster if required.

The Royal Australian Navy ship, HMAS Tobruk, has also been made available to support the relief and recovery effort if required. HMAS Tobruk has heavy lift capability, on board accommodation and ability to support helicopter and landing craft operations.

Australia’s Ambassador to the Philippines Bill Tweddell said that nothing could replace the lives of people who were lost, but it was hoped that Australia’s contribution would go some way to helping people rebuild their lives.

“We are saddened by the enormity of the hardship that our close friends in the Philippines are experiencing at this time,” Tweddell said.

“As the scale of devastation becomes more evident, Australia’s further contribution will help people start the process of recovery as quickly as possible. The Australian Government stands ready to provide further assistance if and when required.”

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

US sends aircraft carrier to bolster PH relief efforts

WASHINGTON - The United States is sending the USS George Washington aircraft carrier and other ships to bolster relief efforts in the Philippines after a devastating typhoon killed thousands of people, U.S. officials said on Monday.

The Pentagon, confirming an earlier Reuters report about the deployment, said Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel had ordered the nuclear-power aircraft carrier and other ships "to make best speed for the Republic of the Philippines."

The George Washington is now in Hong Kong and was expected to arrive within 48-to-72 hours, along with other ships, including guided missile cruisers and destroyers. The carrier was expected to depart in the coming hours. Crew were being recalled early from shore leave, the Pentagon said.

With some 5,000 sailors and more than 80 aircraft, the George Washington brings enormous capacity to relief efforts.

Beyond serving a staging platform for flights, the carrier's water distilling plants can produce 400,000 gallons (1.5 million liters) of fresh water per day, according to its website.

"As needed, these ships and aircraft will be able to provide humanitarian assistance, supplies, and medical care in support of the ongoing (relief) efforts," Pentagon spokesman George Little said.

News of the ramped U.S. military assistance came as rescue workers in the Philippines tried to determine the full impact of Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest storms ever recorded, which slammed into the country on Friday.

Officials in Tacloban, which bore the brunt of the typhoon, have said the death toll could be 10,000 in their city alone.

At least a dozen U.S. and Philippines military cargo planes arrived in Tacloban on Monday, with the Philippine air force saying it had flown in about 66 tons of relief supplies since Saturday.

An initial contingent of U.S. forces were already on the ground, with most operating out of Villamor Air Base in Manila, and a smaller group in Tacloban.

Accompanying the George Washington will be the cruisers USS Antietam and USS Cowpens and the destroyer USS Mustin.

The supply ship USNS Charles Drew is already under way and will rendezvous with the group as they get closer, the Pentagon said. The destroyer USS Lassen left yesterday for the region, officials said.

The George Washington also counts a carrier air wing on board with helicopters that can bolster disaster relief efforts, if required, officials said.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

SM gives 50,000 relief packs to typhoon survivors

MANILA, Philippines – SM Foundation, the socio-civic arm of the SM Group of Companies, is sending out 50,000 relief packages for survivors of typhoon “Yolanda.”

The packs will be distributed to affected families in Tacloban, Samar, Panay Island (Iloilo, Antique, Capiz), Cebu, Bicol and Bacolod, said SM Foundation executive director Debbie Sy.

The packages, containing bottles of mineral water, rice, ready-to-eat ulam packs, and instant noodles, were packed by SM Foundation volunteers and partners.

A total of 20,000 packs will be given to Tacloban; 10,000 in Cebu; 7,000 in Panay Island; 5,000 in Samar; 4,000 in Bohol; 3,000 in Bicol; and 1,000 in Bacolod.

SM will send out the goods in cooperation with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the Philippine Air Force, local government units, SM Malls, SM Hypermaket, SM Supermarket, and SaveMore.

SM Foundation said it accepts donations in kind through Tulong Express booths found in all SM Malls nationwide or in cash deposited at BDO account name: SM Foundation Inc. - Operation Tulong Express with savings account number: 15000 70694.

SM Foundation will issue receipt of donations for deposit slips faxed to 831-8282.

SM employees, meanwhile, are raising funds for the victims of typhoon Yolanda. In the recent Bohol quake, they were able to raise more than P100,000.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Dinky pleads for understanding of looters

MANILA – Department of Social Welfare and Development Secretary Dinky Soliman on Tuesday said the people should not be so quick to judge survivors of typhoon "Yolanda" who have resorted to looting in order to survive.

"Ngayon lang naman tayo nagka-disaster na ganito ang naging responde ng mga tao. At para sa akin, unawain natin sila. Hindi nila inakala na ganito ang mangyayari sa kanila," Soliman told dzMM.

She added that sheer magnitude of the devastation brought by the typhoon has forced the hungry and tired survivors to resort to lawlessness.

"[Naiisip siguro nila] 'Bakit nangyari sa akin ito? Galit ako sa lahat, ang akin lang magagawa ay gumawa ng mga pagkilos na ito,'" she said.

Soliman said the most important thing now is that help is coming to the severely battered city of Tacloban in Leyte, and Guiuan in Eastern Samar.

"Ngayon ang pinakamahalagang mangyari, tuloy-tuloy ang bigay ng pagkain, dahil sa aking pagtingin, sa galit, sa frustration, sa sama ng loob, ang mga tao, masyadong heightened ang pangangailangan na ma-assure na sila ay hindi mauubusan," Soliman said, reacting to reports that some survivors were blocking vehicles carrying relief goods.

State of national calamity, curfew

President Benigno Aquino on Monday night declared a state of national calamity following the devastation caused by the typhoon.

The declaration will allow the national government to fast-track delivery of aid and basic services, particularly in typhoon-hit areas in the Visayas.

Around P18.7 billion in government funds can be used to help victims and rebuild communities, Aquino said. Some P1.1 billion in Quick Response Funds were also allotted for the DSWD and the Department of Public Works and Highways.

Over 20 countries, as well as foreign aid organizations and the private sector, are helping in the relief efforts.

To address the crime incidents plaguing badly-hit Tacloban, the Philippine government said Tuesday it had deployed armored vehicles, set up checkpoints and imposed a curfew to help end looting in the city.

Tacloban -- on the central island of Leyte -- bore the brunt of Friday's category-five storm with at least 10,000 people feared to have died there, according to the United Nations.

The devastated provincial capital -- a city of 220,000 residents -- has also seen some of the worst pillaging. Famished survivors desperate for food and medical supplies have ransacked aid convoys, hampering relief efforts.

Survivors have reported gangs stealing consumer goods including televisions and washing machines from small businesses.

Interior Secretary Mar Roxas said four Simba armored personnel carriers had been deployed to contain looting and help restore law and order, a day after hundreds of Philippine soldiers and police were sent to the city.

"We are circulating them (the Simbas) in the city to show the people, especially those with bad intentions, that the authorities have returned," Roxas told DZMM radio.

Checkpoints have been set up to stop people from mobbing relief trucks, he said.

Many resorted to looting with a charity saying that in one case, a man with a machete tried to rob aid workers who were receiving a delivery of medicine.

"The presence of policemen, military and government forces will definitely improve things (but) it will not be overnight," Roxas said, confirming reports that the Tacloban city government had imposed a curfew on residents of 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.

"It is a tool that we are using to minimize the looting and break-ins. We know some people cannot return home (during the curfew) because their homes were washed away but it is more effective against roving gangs who are looking for targets of opportunity," he said.

It is not clear where newly homeless residents are meant to go during this period.

Roxas added that the public works department had cleared at least one lane of a highway entering the city, which would speed up entry of supplies. It is hoped that incidences of looting will decrease as food relief flows to isolated areas.

Roxas said the government's three main priorities were to restore peace and order, bring in relief goods and start collecting corpses.

"Now that we have achieved number one and two, the priority is the recovery of the cadavers," he said. – with Agence France-Presse

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

'Nothing left to loot' in devastated Tacloban

TACLOBAN, Philippines - Hung outside a shattered church in the Philippine coastal city of Tacloban, on a road flanked with uncollected corpses and canyons of debris, is a handwritten sign.

It read, "We need help!"

Relief supplies are pouring into Tacloban three days after Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful storms ever recorded, turned this once-vibrant port city of 220,000 into a corpse-choked wasteland.

Tacloban city administrator Tecson Juan Lim says the death toll in this city alone "could go up to 10,000."

At least a dozen U.S. and Philippines military cargo planes arrived on Monday, with the Philippine air force saying it had flown in about 60,000 kg (66 tons) of relief supplies since Saturday. But the demand is huge and the supplies aren't reaching those who need it most.

"People are roaming around the city, looking for food and water," said Christopher Pedrosa, a government aid worker.

Aid trucks from the airport struggle to enter the city because of the stream of people and vehicles leaving it. On motorbikes, trucks or by foot, people clog the road to the airport, clutching scarves to their faces to blot out the dust and stench of bodies.

Hundreds have already left on cargo planes to the capital, Manila, or the second-biggest city of Cebu, with many more sleeping rough overnight at the wrecked airport in the hope of boarding flights in the coming days.

Reuters journalists traveled on a government aid truck which took five hours to pick up 600 bags of rice, tinned goods and milk from the airport and take it to a distribution point at City Hall. Thousands more bags were left at the airport because the truck wasn't big enough, said officials.

Pedrosa, the government aid worker, said security concerns prevented supplies from being handed out after dark.

"There might be a stampede," he said.

The aid truck was guarded by soldiers toting assault rifles. "It's risky," said Jewel Ray Marcia, a Philippine army lieutenant who led the unit.

"People are angry. They are going out of their minds."

"NOTHING LEFT TO LOOT"

The official slogan of Tacloban is "A City of Progress, Beauty and Love". But Typhoon Haiyan, known locally as Yolanda, has turned that on its head, as desperation and anger grow. Residents wait with increasing impatience for a trickle of aid to become a torrent.

Earlier on Monday, said Pedrosa, soldiers fired warning shots into the air to stop people stealing fuel from a petrol station.

A heavier presence of soldiers and police on the debris-choked streets has stopped most looting, at least for now.

People were still emptying one warehouse of rice and loading it onto carts and motorcycles. No police or soldiers stopped them.

A handwritten sign pinned to a makeshift police checkpoint near a looted department store warned of an 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew. Reuters was unable to confirm whether the curfew was observed or enforced.

Also cleared out is a bottling factory for beer and soft drinks. In some areas, Coca-Cola was handed out free while drinking water was impossible to find. Officials were warning residents not to drink water from wells, which were likely polluted.

But there is another reason the looting had abated.

"There is nothing left to loot," said Pedrosa.

"THERE IS NOTHING HERE"

Officials attribute the high death toll to the many people who stayed behind to protect their property and were swept away in a storm surge of water and lacerating debris.

One of them was Marivel Saraza, 39, who moved her six children further inland before Haiyan struck, but stayed behind to look after her home only a stone's throw from the sea.

She ended up battling through chest-high water to reach higher ground, while the storm surge destroyed her two-story concrete home.

"My house just dissolved in the water," she said.

Saraza now struggles to feed her children. The government gave her 2 kg (4.4 lb) of rice and a single can of sardines - barely enough for one family meal - so her husband was foraging for fruit further inland. But trees have been combed flat by the force of the wind and rice fields inundated with salt water.

Haiyan struck with a force strong enough to drown hundreds of people in a storm surge and send cars and shipping containers tumbling through neighborhoods. All that's left of the main airport building is a carcass of twisted metal.

The sea has yet to retreat from some neighborhoods and the streets are flooded. The bay is littered with half-submerged cars.

Some people are making shelters from what the water has left of their broken homes. Others, unable to find any flat ground amid the ruins, sleep on sodden mattresses on their roofs. Some 5,000 people sheltered in a stadium.

The streets empty at night, the ruins lit here and there by cooking fires, or scoped by the powerful lights of passing army trucks.

Rusty Lacambra, 42, is joining the exodus along with his wife, two sons and niece. On Monday night he hitched a lift in an army truck bound for the airport to wait with hundreds of others hoping for a free flight on a cargo plane to Manila.

"My house is destroyed," he said. "Even if you have money there is no food to buy. There is nothing here."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

'Yolanda' survivors beg for help

Death toll could rise once isolated coastal villages are reached

Roads, airports and bridges destroyed

U.S. sends Marines and sailors to help

TACLOBAN, Philippines - Dazed survivors of a super typhoon that swept through the central Philippines killing an estimated 10,000 people begged for help and scavenged for food, water and medicine on Monday, threatening to overwhelm military and rescue resources.

As President Benigno Aquino deployed hundreds of soldiers in the coastal city of Tacloban to quell looting, reports from one town showed apocalyptic scenes of destruction in another region that has not been reached by rescue workers or the armed forces.

The government has not confirmed officials' estimates over the weekend of 10,000 deaths, but the toll from Haiyan, one of the strongest typhoons ever recorded, is clearly far higher than the current official count of 255. The Armed Forces in the central Philippines on Monday reported a death toll of 942.

"The situation is bad, the devastation has been significant. In some cases the devastation has been total," Secretary to the Cabinet Rene Almendras told a news conference.

The United Nations said officials in Tacloban, which bore the brunt of the storm on Friday, had reported one mass grave of 300-500 bodies.

More than 600,000 people were displaced by the storm across the country and some have no access to food, water, or medicine, the U.N. says.

Flattened by surging waves and monster winds up to 235 mph (378 kph), Tacloban, 580 km (360 miles) southeast of Manila, was relying almost entirely for supplies and evacuation on just three military transport planes flying from nearby Cebu city.

Dozens of residents clamoured for help at the airport gates.

"Help us, help us. Where is President Aquino? We need water, we are very thirsty," shouted one woman. "When are you going to get bodies from the streets?"

Haiyan is estimated to have destroyed about 70 to 80 percent of structures in its path as it tore into the coastal provinces of Leyte and Samar. The damage to the coconut- and rice-growing region was expected to amount to more than 3 billion pesos ($69 million), Citi Research said in a report, with "massive losses" for private property.

Most of the damage and deaths were caused by huge waves that inundated towns and swept away coastal villages in scenes that officials likened to the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Bodies litter the streets of the Tacloban, rotting and swelling under the hot sun and adding to the health risk.

International aid agencies said relief resources in the Philippines were stretched thin after a 7.2 magnitude quake in central Bohol province last month and displacement caused by a conflict with Muslim rebels in southern Zamboanga province.

Operations were further hampered because roads, airports and bridges had been destroyed or were covered in wreckage. Threatening to add to the crisis in the impoverished area, a tropical depression carrying heavy rain was forecast to arrive in the region as early as Tuesday.

Awelina Hadloc, the owner of a convenience store, foraged for instant noodles at a warehouse that was almost bare from looting. She said her store had been washed away by a 10-foot (3-metre) storm surge.

"It is so difficult. It is like we are starting again," said the 28-year-old. "There are no more supplies in the warehouse and the malls."

Aquino, facing one of the biggest challenges of his three-year rule, deployed 300 soldiers and police to restore order in Tacloban after looters rampaged through several stores.

Aquino, who before the storm said the government was aiming for zero casualties, has shown exasperation at conflicting official reports on damage and deaths. One TV network quoted him as telling the head of the disaster agency that he was running out of patience.

DEATH TOLL COULD CLIMB

The official death toll is likely to climb rapidly once rescuers reach remote villages along the coast, such as Guiuan, a town in eastern Samar province with a population of 40,000 that was largely destroyed.

"The only reason why we have no reports of casualties up to now is that communications systems ... are down," said Colonel John Sanchez, posting on the Armed Forces Facebook page.

About 300 people died in Samar, said an official from the provincial disaster agency. Baco, a city of 35,000 in Oriental Mindoro province, was 80 percent under water, the U.N. said.

U.S. aid groups also launched a multimillion-dollar relief campaign. An official from one group, World Vision, said there were early reports that as much as 90 percent of northern Cebu had been destroyed. An aid team from Oxfam reported "utter destruction" in the northern-most tip of Cebu.

Thirteen people were killed and dozens hurt during heavy winds and storms in Vietnam as Haiyan approached the coast, state media reported, even though it had weakened substantially after hitting the Philippines.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

'Miracle' baby born in typhoon rubble

TACLOBAN - Emily Sagalis cried tears of joy after giving birth to a "miracle" girl in a typhoon-ravaged Philippine city, then named the baby after her mother who went missing in the storm.

The girl was born Monday in a destroyed airport compound that was turned into a makeshift medical centre, with her bed a piece of dirty plywood resting amid dirt, broken glass, twisted metal, nails and other debris.

"She is so beautiful. I will name her Bea Joy in honour of my mother, Beatriz," Sagalis, 21, whispered shortly after giving birth.

Sagalis said her mother was swept away when giant waves generated by Super Typhoon Haiyan surged into their home near Tacloban city, the capital of Leyte province which was one of the worst-hit areas, and she has not been seen since.

More than 10,000 people are believed to have died in Leyte, and many hundreds on other islands across the central Philippines, which would make Haiyan the country's worst recorded natural disaster.

But, in the most tragic of circumstances, Bea Joy restarted the cycle of life.

"She is my miracle. I had thought I would die with her still inside me when high waves came and took us all away," she said, as her teary-eyed husband, Jobert, clasped the baby and a volunteer held an IV drip above them.

The husband said the first wave that came carried their wooden home in the coastal town of San Jose many metres inland, washing all of the family outside.

He said the entire community had been washed away, with the once picturesque area replaced by rubble and the bloated remains of people and animals.

"We are supposed to be celebrating today, but we are also mourning our dead," Jobert said.

He said it was God's will that he found his wife floating amongst the debris.

They were carried away for what felt like hours until the water subsided, and they found themselves sheltering in a school building where other mud-soaked and injured survivors had huddled.

The couple and their surviving neighbours subsisted there until Monday morning only on bottles of water they found among the debris. Jobert said he knew that his wife was about to give birth any day, but no help or aid had come.

"She began labour at 5:00 am (Monday) so we had to walk several kilometres before a truck driver hitched us a ride," he said.

The young military doctor who attended to her, Captain Victoriano Sambale, said the new mother had already broken her waters by the time the couple stepped inside the building, and then developed bleeding during the delivery.

"This is the first time we have delivered a baby here. The baby is fine and we have managed to stop the bleeding of the mother," he said.

However, he cautioned doctors were extremely concerned about potential infections that could easily be caught amid the unsterile conditions, with the medical team almost powerless now to help her.

"Definitely the mother is still in danger from infection and sepsis (septicemia). So we need to give her intravenous antibiotics. Unfortunately we ran out of even the oral antibiotics yesterday," Sambale said.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Massive destruction in Tacloban City

'Yolanda' wipes out Tacloban City

MANILA -- Tacloban City in Leyte felt the wrath of super typhoon "Yolanda," with storm surges wiping out houses and flooding many areas in the city.

The destructive typhoon completely wiped out Barangay San Jose, a coastal village in the city, as shown in the video footage taken by ABS-CBN veteran broadcast journalist and TV Patrol anchor Ted Failon.

Failon, who was in Tacloban City during the height of Yolanda, was able to capture the devastation wrought by the storm surges and strong winds.

He described the storm surges as "paglamon ng karagatan sa mga lugar na malapit sa dagat."

He and his news team lost contact with ABS-CBN on Friday after telecommunications and electricity towers were toppled by the typhoon.

The storm surge, which possibly affected the entire downtown Tacloban, also swept away an ABS-CBN crew vehicle and destroyed transmission equipment.

Failon, who is now in Cebu, showed the footage that took during and after Yolanda's onslaught on Saturday.

The video shows houses completely destroyed, trees toppled, and large piles of debris scattered on the streets.

It also shows Failon helping a boy lift the body of his father, who was killed at the height of the typhoon.

The video also shows the bodies of three children and their grandmother who were killed after being trapped inside their house during the storm surge.

According to the aunt of the children, their parents have yet to be informed of their death.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com