Just heard from some of my relatives, and the destruction is unimaginable. Apparetly there are many cases of people taking shelter in government buildings and schools. But the infrastructure of those buildings is so inferior to ours (mud, wooden walls, etc) that many hundreds of people were injured as the buildings collapsed around them, trapping them under the rubble.
Cebu City was largely unaffected other then large rainfall and heavy wind. It is the largest port city in the country and is now being used as the central hub for all emergency operations. To the east and north of Cebu City is where the worst of the damage occured. Entire towns have been wiped out. These people have nothing, and many returned to their rubbled homes not only to seek belongings, but because they have no where else to go and their choices were to either be exposed in the rain on the streets, or try and hide under whatever shelter remained in their homes. Most of the homes are shanty-type ''houses'' and when I was there last month, you could easily run into a wall and knock it down if there wasn't concrete support. Many homes also do not have floor foundations and are built on the bare dirt. Imagine all that muddy water under your feet as you try and navigate your own home.
I will try and post some pictures from FB tonight that my cousin's have posted. While I am grateful they are all safe as all my family is in Cebu City, I can't imagine what it's like to lose everything you own in the surrounding towns. This is the biggest natural disaster in the country's history, and the death toll is only going to get higher as emergency workers finally make it into towns that have been cut off from rescue.
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