
Tormented typhoon victims scour for food - elleferrer
http://www.rappler.com/move-ph/issues/disasters/typhoon-yolanda/43381-tormented-typhoon-victims-scour-for-food-yolanda
======
xacaxulu
You can donate to Save the Children here:
[http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/about-
us/emergencies/phili...](http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/about-
us/emergencies/philippines-typhoon-haiyan)

Also:
[https://donate.oxfam.org.uk/emergency/philippines?intcmp=hp_...](https://donate.oxfam.org.uk/emergency/philippines?intcmp=hp_276_hero_philippines-
typhoon_2013-11-10)

~~~
wozniacki
I know that this is an emergency and perhaps not the best time to split hairs.

Having said that, is there a Charity Navigator for the UK / Europe?

[http://www.charitynavigator.org/](http://www.charitynavigator.org/)

I do not give a single red penny to even a local food bank unless I am fairly
familiar with the inner workings and general overhead of the organization.

I am sorry but gone are those days one could blindly write a check to any
random outfit - Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders or Oxfam - however
reputable and however straight-laced.

The kind of waste, misuse and sheer incompetence that goes on in some charity
houses borders on the rotten.

~~~
jaredhansen
Direct Relief gets great marks from Charity Navigator and others, and 100% of
donations go to intended recipients due to a neat structure that offloads ops
costs onto a trust.

[http://www.directrelief.org/](http://www.directrelief.org/)

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elleferrer
Some people are surviving on just coconuts because they are afraid to fish due
to all the dead bodies. I have family, friends and employees in the
Philippines, fortunately they are all safe and were in areas only battered by
the heavy winds and rain. I was told many years ago they were suppose to build
a WALL near Tacloban, knowing it was a bad area for storm surges, but politics
prevented that from ever happening. The devastation is so heartbreaking! No
one knows what to do, it's just so overwhelming. OH.. and there's another
storm, Zoraida, approaching the southern Philippines just days after this
super storm.

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yetanotherphd
Can anyone comment on the relative efficiency of charitable donations to
disaster relief, as opposed to other programs?

I think it would be a mistake to bias charitable donations towards acute
problems as opposed to chronic ones.

But on the other hand, increases in the total amount of charitable giving are
a net plus, so I'm not complaining about this story, I just think it's good to
think of the bigger picture too.

~~~
TylerE
Basically yea. Anything you give now won't get there quick enough to do any
good. All the stuff the red cross collects after a disaster is simply
warehoused for the NEXT time something happens.

~~~
thecodeore
Or to buy the Red Cross Executives BMW's...

Never donate to the Red Cross, pick a Real Charity

~~~
erre
Source? I was about to donate to the Red Cross, so I'd like to hear more about
this.

~~~
probably_wrong
In my opinion, you should just go ahead and donate. There was a thread a
couple days ago about someone replying to essentially the same comment, and
for every point there was a counterpoint that led nowhere.

I don't doubt that an international association like the Red Cross has
administrative overhead. It is reassuring thought that overall reports [1]
seem to be positive.

If that argument is not enough, I'd argue further: we cannot know for sure how
(or if) our contribution will make it to those that need it, but I'd rather
donate now and research later than postpone the donation "just until I find
the ideal charity" and then forget about it. The Red Cross has been around for
around a hundred years, though, so I'd say that's good enough when it comes to
trusting a random association to coordinate at a global scale.

Disclaimer: I donated to the Red Cross

[1]
[http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary...](http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=3277)

~~~
erre
Excellent reasoning :)

------
frapbot
This whole thing is just heartbreaking. I live in Manila but spent the
majority of my life in Bicol, a southeastern province facing the pacific,
making it one of the most typhoon-prone parts of the country.

I watched the local news over dinner today and here is the latest:

    
    
        People sleeping near the tarmac, waiting to get out of Leyte as soon as possible.
        Ports in Cebu are filled with people going to Leyte, some travels are cancelled due to bad weather.
        Businessmen complaining about the looting and wants to leave the province, demanding security from the government "for a long time". They also said that these looters are organized and are taking advantage of the current state of the province.
        A lady telling the story of his children eating spoiled food. I can't quite translate the whole story from the local language but this one really touched me.
        A child pleading for help, saying "wala nang pagasa" (Hope is gone).
        The Department of Help urged the local government to postpone the burial of the dead.
        Some of the baranggays (local communities) are still isolated.

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nirmel
Can we as a community think of anything we could do help this situation?

Is anyone helping people locate loved ones?

Is anyone giving people a way to report where help is most needed?

Is anyone giving bystanders like us direction on how we should help?

If funds are needed, is anyone taking charge in rallying the support needed
for private donations?

~~~
aaron695
Give money.

~~~
kevinconroy
+1. Why money and not stuff? There are literally hundreds of articles on this
topic, but here's one from a professor of public health specific to Typhoon
Haiyan relief:

[http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2...](http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2013/11/how_to_help_typhoon_haiyan_survivors_in_the_philippines_the_only_donation.html)

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8ig8
"THIS STORY MAKES PEOPLE SAD"

I'm not familiar with Rappler and have never seen this emotion voting before.

Edit: For 5%, this story makes them happy?! This story makes me want to help.
Looks like people are adding details on how to do so. Ignore this trivial
comment and see those. Thanks.

Edit 2: Here's a related thread on Reddit for details on what's happening and
how to donate:

Emergency appeal in response to Typhoon Haiyan (self.doctorswithoutborders)

[http://www.reddit.com/r/doctorswithoutborders/comments/1qejw...](http://www.reddit.com/r/doctorswithoutborders/comments/1qejwm/emergency_appeal_in_response_to_typhoon_haiyan/)

~~~
vacri
Re: the 5% happy - the internet has trolls and other folks who just like being
contrary for the sake of it.

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elleferrer
This quote really got me choked up, "I am a decent person. But if you have not
eaten in 3 days, you do shameful things to survive," ...as for Rappler's mood
meter, I'm definitely SAD and angry about all this.

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kevinconroy
[http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/super-typhoon-haiyan-
re...](http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/super-typhoon-haiyan-relief-fund/)

GlobalGiving.org's Super Typhoon Haiyan Relief Fund is raising funds to
support immediate relief and long term recovery efforts. Donations made to the
relief fund will be used to support local organizations that are well
positioned to make a direct impact in their communities but lack the name
brand recognition to fundraise internationally.

After the 2011 Japan Tsunami, GlobalGiving raised over $8.9M for the Japan
relief fund and used it to support a variety of local non-profits in the Japan
doing incredible work.

[http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/japan-earthquake-
tsunam...](http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/japan-earthquake-tsunami-
relief/updates/)

Disclosure: I'm the Chief Product Officer at GlobalGiving and am happy to
answer any questions. Your donation will be used responsibility to ensure that
it helps those in need in the Philippines.

Pre-emptive Answer: Yes, GlobalGiving has overhead. Every charity does. We
offer you the option to explicitly cover this overhead when you donate so that
100% of your donation will go to relief efforts. None of the other charities
can make this promise.

------
nowarninglabel
TIME actually has a good, comprehensive list of ways to help:

If you’re looking or have information on a missing person, Google Person
Finder has launched a Typhoon Yolanda page. A Google Crisis Map is also
available for evacuation and relief information.

The mGive Foundation is collecting donations from U.S. wireless subscribers,
who can text AID to 80108 to give a $10 donation to the organization’s
Philippines Typhoon Diaster Relief Fund. Charges will appear on the user’s
wireless bill or will be deducted from a prepaid balance. Text STOP to 80108
to stop or HELP for assistance. Full terms are available here.

UNICEF is supporting relief efforts by helping displaced families find access
to shelter, clean water, food and vaccines and airlifting $1.3 million of
additional supplies from its Copenhagen warehouse. You can donate online, call
1-800-367-5437 or text RELIEF to 864233.

The Philippine Red Cross is providing a tracking service for family members
looking for missing people. The organization is accepting donations on its
website (100 PHP = $2.30) and is looking for volunteers to help assemble
relief packages at its headquarters in Manila.

The American Red Cross has also activated a family-tracking service for those
looking for a missing family member in the Philippines. Donors can send a
check to their local chapter, indicating “Philippines Typhoons and Floods” in
the memo line.

The World Food Programme is mobilizing 40 metric tons of high-energy biscuits
and additional relief supplies, but it is also accepting donations online or
by calling 1-202-747-0722 or +39-06-65131 from outside the U.S.

CARE is accepting donations on its website and has deployed workers to the
Philippines to assist with emergency relief. You can donate by phone at
1-800-521-2273 or +1-404-681-2252 for international calls.

Oxfam has emergency responders on the ground to assist with relief support.
The organization is asking for contributions to its Typhoon Haiyan Relief and
Recovery Fund online.

International Medical Corps is also on the ground to help assess damage and is
accepting donations on its emergency-response page for Haiyan relief.

ChildFund International is distributing clean water, food, blankets and other
emergency aid items. Staff members are also setting up child-centered spaces
in evacuation centers to offer counseling and relief for children and their
families. Donate online.

Doctors Without Borders has had 15 members of an emergency team in Cebu since
Saturday. The organization is sending more staff to assist with medical and
psychological treatment as well as items such as medical kits, vaccines and
hygiene kits over the next few days. An additional cargo with an inflatable
hospital and medical material is being prepared to leave later this week.
Donate online.

The International Rescue Committee has also dispatched a team of aid workers
to assist in assessing the damage and providing access to clean water and
hygiene and sanitation needs. The organization is asking for donations online.

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pasilibm
This is a scenario Silicon Valley libertarians would be cool with. "The market
will take care of it", right? Still waiting for the libertarians to move to
the Philippines...

