On Sunday, instead of a day of rest, we had a long day of travel and work in the hot humid heat. We got up at 4:40 a.m. to pack up our camping gear, ate a boiled egg, half a hot dog and a piece of bread under the tarp awnings put up out from the side of the small Salvation Army Church in Tacloban. The poured concrete church building was far enough away from the 15 ft. surge that devastated the city of Tacloban that it only had wind damage. This is command Central for the Salvation Army for teams handing out water and cookies at the airport’s partially demolished terminal and food to the people in the city.
At 6 a.m. we loaded our medicines, camping supplies and boxes of water into the back of a covered truck with benches on each side. By the time we squeezed in, it was packed to the ceiling in the front of the cab, under the seats and then down the central isle and between our legs. We headed out of town amongst the death and destruction of Tacloban. Only a few badly damaged concrete walls still stand as you get closer to the sea. Concrete power poles are laid over on their sides. The storm surge reached into the second floors of buildings; blew out windows and left bodies tangled in electric lines 20 feet off the ground. An intact roof is rarer than hen’s teeth after the 230 mile an hour peak winds of Typhoon Yolanda swept ceramic tiles and corrugated roofing away.
All the same, the roads are congested with people on bicycles, motorcycles and a few cars. We have to stop 3 to 4 times for huge front end loaders starting the endless job of shoveling up debris to dump into large dump trucks. It is an endless job. Along the road, people salvage metal roof pieces out of rubble for makeshift shelter construction.
We don’t get out of town before our Salvation Army driver realizes the permit to get gasoline is not in the vehicle, so we pull over to the side of the road and send word for someone to bring it on a motorbike. The cab is like a sweatbox as we wait for an hour. Then we thread our way through, heading south towards Baybay City. On the way we pick up Pami, a missionary midwife, and Russ, a US raised Filipino doctor who is now a missionary to his own country. They work in Manila, but have come to help.They are fluent in the local language and have invaluable knowledge of the country. Along with Dr. Cete, a Salvation Army doctor; Steve, Nadir and Paul make up the rest of our team. Steve Euler is an internist working with Christ Community Health in Memphis; Nadir is an Egyptian American doctor who has returned to reach his own people and Paul Stevens, my brother is our photographer.
It takes us six hours to travel 70 kilometers which included a stop to stretch our legs and a detour off the main road looking for gas. All the electricity on the island came from Tacloban so Baybay City is powerless, except for a generator which is sporadically sending water to sections of the city. We stop and get meat and rice at a local restaurant and then head to our destination.
This area, on the leeward side of the island behind high mountains, wasn’t hit as bad as Tacloban; but there are still needs so we set up in the Salvation Army Corp (church) three hours before dark and see about 40 grateful parents and children for trauma, anxiety, respiratory illnesses and those who just can’t get their medicines for their chronic diseases. Without electrify, we meet by candlelight to plan the next day, eat a delicious meal of rice, fish and chicken made by women in the community.
Up early, we see more patients before packing up to find another site. The government health briefing the night before we left had given us a couple of places to check out. One was a district hospital, but when we pull up, we learn the Chinese arrived the day before with a large team. The needs seem to be off the main road so we thread our way through rice paddies and unpaved roads checking out local communities. By the end of the day, we have a plan and have made promises to return to a couple of places the next day to see patients.
Already, two weeks after the typhoon relief groups are beginning to head home. An Australian team said they are leaving tomorrow. Other relief groups will follow quickly. The need for medical help will increase and the resources to meet them will be few. It will take years to rebuild and recover. Global Health Relief will be here after most are gone because the local medical system will take months to recover. Many of their personnel lost their homes and some lost their family members in the storm. We are not here to grab headlines but serve. Just like Jesus would.
Dave
At 6 a.m. we loaded our medicines, camping supplies and boxes of water into the back of a covered truck with benches on each side. By the time we squeezed in, it was packed to the ceiling in the front of the cab, under the seats and then down the central isle and between our legs. We headed out of town amongst the death and destruction of Tacloban. Only a few badly damaged concrete walls still stand as you get closer to the sea. Concrete power poles are laid over on their sides. The storm surge reached into the second floors of buildings; blew out windows and left bodies tangled in electric lines 20 feet off the ground. An intact roof is rarer than hen’s teeth after the 230 mile an hour peak winds of Typhoon Yolanda swept ceramic tiles and corrugated roofing away.
All the same, the roads are congested with people on bicycles, motorcycles and a few cars. We have to stop 3 to 4 times for huge front end loaders starting the endless job of shoveling up debris to dump into large dump trucks. It is an endless job. Along the road, people salvage metal roof pieces out of rubble for makeshift shelter construction.
We don’t get out of town before our Salvation Army driver realizes the permit to get gasoline is not in the vehicle, so we pull over to the side of the road and send word for someone to bring it on a motorbike. The cab is like a sweatbox as we wait for an hour. Then we thread our way through, heading south towards Baybay City. On the way we pick up Pami, a missionary midwife, and Russ, a US raised Filipino doctor who is now a missionary to his own country. They work in Manila, but have come to help.They are fluent in the local language and have invaluable knowledge of the country. Along with Dr. Cete, a Salvation Army doctor; Steve, Nadir and Paul make up the rest of our team. Steve Euler is an internist working with Christ Community Health in Memphis; Nadir is an Egyptian American doctor who has returned to reach his own people and Paul Stevens, my brother is our photographer.
It takes us six hours to travel 70 kilometers which included a stop to stretch our legs and a detour off the main road looking for gas. All the electricity on the island came from Tacloban so Baybay City is powerless, except for a generator which is sporadically sending water to sections of the city. We stop and get meat and rice at a local restaurant and then head to our destination.
This area, on the leeward side of the island behind high mountains, wasn’t hit as bad as Tacloban; but there are still needs so we set up in the Salvation Army Corp (church) three hours before dark and see about 40 grateful parents and children for trauma, anxiety, respiratory illnesses and those who just can’t get their medicines for their chronic diseases. Without electrify, we meet by candlelight to plan the next day, eat a delicious meal of rice, fish and chicken made by women in the community.
Up early, we see more patients before packing up to find another site. The government health briefing the night before we left had given us a couple of places to check out. One was a district hospital, but when we pull up, we learn the Chinese arrived the day before with a large team. The needs seem to be off the main road so we thread our way through rice paddies and unpaved roads checking out local communities. By the end of the day, we have a plan and have made promises to return to a couple of places the next day to see patients.
Already, two weeks after the typhoon relief groups are beginning to head home. An Australian team said they are leaving tomorrow. Other relief groups will follow quickly. The need for medical help will increase and the resources to meet them will be few. It will take years to rebuild and recover. Global Health Relief will be here after most are gone because the local medical system will take months to recover. Many of their personnel lost their homes and some lost their family members in the storm. We are not here to grab headlines but serve. Just like Jesus would.
Dave
No comments:
Post a Comment