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Stories from the Field: Full of Smile, Full of Hope

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A day before Typhoon Odette (internationally referred to as Typhoon Rai) made landfall in the Philippines, more than 400 residents of Barangay Bilang-bilangan  evacuated from their island community. Grace Obguia and her family were among them. 

BOHOL  — Grace never imagined that their living situation would change completely overnight. Together with her husband and three children, they spent the night of December 15 at Tubigon Cultural Center located in the mainland area of Tubigon Municipality. 

Around 5:40 pm on the 16th of December 2021, Typhoon Odette was ravaging the nearby municipalities of Carlos P. Garcia and Bien Unido. 

More than two months have passed but Grace still gets teary-eyed whenever she recalls the ordeal they had faced. “We could hear the winds howling and my children wouldn’t stop crying,” she shares. “All I could do was pray hard for everyone’s safety.” 

Their anxiety continued to build up when the first floor of the cultural center became flooded due to the storm surge. This forced them to transfer to the second floor of the building despite the heavy rain. They stayed there for several hours waiting for the storm to pass while being completely drenched from the floodwater. 

After spending two days in the evacuation center, they went back to the island only to be greeted by further dismay. What was once paved with quaint homes and vibrant coconut trees is now filled with Odette’s wreckage. The Obguia family’s home that stood along the shoreline was completely washed out. Disheartened and without a roof over their heads, the family decided to clear some of the debris and spend the night along the shore. 

“We could hear the winds howling and my children wouldn’t stop crying,”

Within the next few days, Grace’s family found some comfort through the support of various people and organizations. Food assistance was readily available for many of the affected families. They also received cash assistance from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) which they partly used to purchase basic shelter materials. This allowed them to rebuild a modest home, this time a bit farther from the shoreline. 

Bilang-bilangan is a quaint island located in the Municipality of Tubigon, Bohol. Surrounded by clear blue waters, many residents like Grace and her husband mainly relied on fishing for their livelihood. After the typhoon, they did not have a regular source of income because their fishing nets were all damaged. When food packs became scarce, they would catch mussels and other shellfish for their personal consumption. In rare cases, Grace would borrow some money from her friends in the mainland so she could buy for the needs of their 3-year old child. 

Grace is thankful for any chance that she could save money.  Action Against Hunger, through the Typhoon Odette Response of the EU-funded REACH project, provided her a hygiene kit that included soap, toothbrush, and other hygiene products that would last for a month, sparing her expenses on keeping her family clean and sanitary. 

Photo by Roussam Dilig for Action Against Hunger

Despite the ordeal that she and her family have been through, Grace smiles as she thinks about all the help they have received since the calamity. She is hopeful and remains positive that there will only be better days ahead. 

Photo by Roussam Dilig for Action Against Hunger

The Typhoon Odette Emergency Response of the REACH Project (Response to the Unmet Humanitarian Needs of the Most Vulnerable Populations in Mindanao and the Visayas Affected by Conflict, Disasters, and the COVID-19 Pandemic) is funded by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) and is implemented by ACCORD Incorporated, Action Against Hunger Philippines, CARE Philippines, Community Organizers Multiversity, Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS) Inc., Plan International Philippines, Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), Save the Children Philippines, United Youth of the Philippines-Women and Oxfam Pilipinas.

Written by Roussam Dilig | Edited by Joyce Sandajan Read more

Stories from the Field: A Father’s Fight

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TUBIGON, BOHOL — Dennis Frontera, a 45-year-old father of two teenagers, was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes almost a year ago. Before he was always full of energy, but that changed when his condition eventually led to renal failure. While he has since been receiving medical treatments, Dennis knew he was already due for a check-up.

His last consultation in December 2021 hadn’t been easy. Dennis had to be isolated for a couple of days at the hospital which unfortunately was at the same time that Typhoon Odette was wreaking havoc in his community at Barangay Bilang-bilangan. This experience made him hesitant to go back to the health facility.

When he found out about the medical mission in their barangay organized by Action Against Hunger, he was more than eager to get a consultation. This activity was part of the emergency health interventions of the Typhoon Odette Emergency Response of the REACH Project which is funded by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid (ECHO).

Medical Mission in Barangay Bilang-bilangan for people affected by Typhoon Odette. The activity is organized by Action Against Hunger through the EU-funded REACH Project. (Photo by Roussam Dilig for Action Against Hunger)

Dennis received further assistance through cash support which he can use to cover expenses for medicines and laboratory tests.   

With the support he receives from his family and other organizations like Action Against Hunger, Dennis is hopeful that he will recover sooner than later. For the sake of his wife and children, he is optimistic that he will return to the energetic man that he was before.  

Dennis is one of the 60,625 individuals that are expected to benefit from the Typhoon Odette Emergency Response of REACH.

Typhoon-affected residents of Barangay Bilang-bilangan queue for a health consultation during the medical mission organized by Action Against Hunger through the EU-funded REACH Project. (Photo by Roussam Dilig for Action Against Hunger)

The Typhoon Odette Emergency Response of the REACH Project (Response to the Unmet Humanitarian Needs of the Most Vulnerable Populations in Mindanao and the Visayas Affected by Conflict, Disasters, and the COVID-19 Pandemic) is funded by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) and is implemented by ACCORD Incorporated, Action Against Hunger Philippines, CARE Philippines, Community Organizers Multiversity, Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS) Inc., Plan International Philippines, Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), Save the Children Philippines, United Youth of the Philippines-Women and Oxfam Pilipinas.

Action Against Hunger staff conduct a hygiene promotion session during the Medical Mission in Barangay Bilang-bilangan last February 18, 2022 (Photo by Roussam Dilig for Action Against Hunger)

Written by Roussam Dilig | Edited by Joyce Sandajan, Dale Divinagracia

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REACH community volunteers gear up in intensifying COVID-19 vaccine awareness in Mindanao

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We make sure that COVID-19 vaccines reach those who need them the most. Since last year, our COVID-19 Vaccination Response under the REACH Project has been supporting the local government and health units in Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao so that more people in remote and disaster-affected communities are vaccinated and protected against the coronavirus. 

Door-to-door visits in Barangay Sapa, Bayang, Lanao del Sur. (Photo by Veronica Avila for Action Against Hunger)

We are going door-to-door to raise vaccine awareness, traveling by land or by water one community at a time with the support of the European Civil Protection & Humanitarian Aid. Recently, we have mobilized Community Based Information Groups (CBIGs) to support the health workers of our partner rural health units. Together with the CBIGs, we will be intensifying our awareness campaign on COVID-19 vaccination while increasing the pre-registrations of A2 and A3 priority groups. 

30 community volunteers from the 34 barangays participated in the CBIG Orientation which was held at Barangay Casim Lumbaca-Ingud in the Municipality of Masiu, Lanao del Sur last January 13. Members of the Association of Barangay Chairpersons (ABC) in Masiu were also present. 

In photo: CBIG Orientation with MHO in Masiu. (Photo by Veronica Avila for Action Against Hunger)

CBIGs have very important roles. The CBIGs will be doing household visits and community dialogues to conduct vaccine and other health-related orientations. Their most crucial role is to provide overall assistance to their respective barangay health units and vaccination teams.  

As of January 2022, we have covered 45,376 people through REACH’s COVID-19 Vaccine Response activities. 

The COVID-19 Vaccination Response of REACH (Response to the Unmet Humanitarian Needs of the Most Vulnerable Populations in Mindanao Affected by Conflict, Disasters, and the COVID-19 Pandemic) is funded by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) and is implemented by ACCORD Incorporated, Action Against Hunger Philippines, CARE Philippines, Community Organizers Multiversity, Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS) Inc., Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), United Youth of the Philippines-Women and Oxfam Pilipinas.

Written by Veronica Avila | Edited by Joyce Sandajan

Flora Cuaton smiles upon receiving the food packs and NFI kits from REACH - Typhoon Odette Emergency Response. On the left side of the photo are the debris from their damaged house. The green house behind her is owned by one of their children, where they now temporarily stay altogether.

Typhoon Odette Aftermath: “We have to start from scratch and right now, we have nothing.”

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Flora Cuaton, 57, lost their home and livelihood in the distant island barangay of Mantatao, Calape in Bohol province due to Typhoon Odette (internationally named as Typhoon Rai).

“We don’t know how long it will take us to build back all that we lost because we have to start from scratch and right now, we have nothing,” says Flora. She and her husband used to own a small retail (locally called sari-sari) store in front of their house which was situated just by the island’s dock. Their small business was good then but has now been reduced to only broken items and debris.

Flora points to where their previous house and sari-sari store used to stand. | Photo by Joyce Sandajan for Action Against Hunger (Bohol, Philippines)

Before the typhoon, Flora lived with her husband, four grandchildren, and a 35-year old daughter who has a disability. They are now staying with the family of their other child while their house is yet to be repaired. This makes two families—a total of 13 people—living under one small and cramped partially damaged house.

Flora and the rest of her extended family now only rely on relief goods to get by while living in difficult conditions and having no current source of income.

The piles of wood, broken items and other debris are what is left from what was once Flora and her family's house

The piles of wood, broken items, and other debris remain from what was once Flora and her family’s house. | Photo by Joyce Sandajan for Action Against Hunger (Bohol, Philippines)

With the support of the European Union, her family is one of the 227 typhoon-affected households in Mantatao who received food packs including 50 kilograms of rice, and non-food items such as kitchenware and sleeping essentials through the Typhoon Odette Emergency Response.

Food packs and NFI kits are lined up along the entrance of the barangay; a REACH Banner hangs and behind it are broken houses.

Food packs with sacks of rice and NFI kits are lined up along the entrance of the barangay which is just by the dock of the island. | Photo by Joyce Sandajan for Action Against Hunger (Bohol, Philippines)

Barangay Mantatao is one of the islands in the Municipality of Calape. It takes a 25 to 30-minute boat ride from the town proper of Calape going to Mantatao island. Aside from being geographically isolated, many houses in Mantatao had been totally damaged by Typhoon Odette leaving many residents in great need of humanitarian support.

The Typhoon Odette Emergency Response of REACH is funded by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) and is implemented by ACCORD Incorporated, Action Against Hunger Philippines, CARE Philippines, Community Organizers Multiversity, Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS) Inc., Plan International Philippines, Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), Save the Children Philippines, United Youth of the Philippines-Women and Oxfam Pilipinas.

Written by Joyce Sandajan

Affected families of Typhoon Odette react to emergency aid received from EU-funded REACH project

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“As humanitarian workers, it felt good to see the people’s smiles when they received the sacks of rice, groceries and the kitchen and sleeping kits that were provided,” said Mary Amy Gagalac, the Head of Project of our Typhoon Odette (internationally named Typhoon Rai) Emergency Response in Bohol under the EU-funded REACH Project or the ‘Response to the Unmet Humanitarian Needs of the Most Vulnerable Populations in Mindanao and the Visayas Affected by Conflict, Disasters, and the COVID-19 Pandemic.’

Residents of Barangay Ugpong in Loboc, Bohol line up to refill their containers during one of the water trucking sessions provided by the REACH – Typhoon Odette Emergency Response implemented by Action Against Hunger.

We have been working to identify the needs of typhoon-affected communities in Bohol within days since Odette made landfall on December 16, 2021. Immediate life-saving aid through emergency kits and water trucking services have since been provided by REACH in the municipalities of Loboc, San Miguel, and Calape through the efforts of our teams on the ground.

A resident carries a refilled container while walking in a muddy path.

A resident carries a refilled container after the water trucking service in Loboc, Bohol. | Photo by Melinda Buensuceso for Action Against Hunger (Bohol, Philippines)

“They expressed their gratitude to us and to ECHO. One of the recipients from Barangay Ugpong whose house was totally destroyed by the typhoon was in tears upon receiving the relief goods,” Amy shares.

Vince, one of our Project Assistants, hands over a food kit to one of the typhoon-affected households in Barangay Camias, Calape, Bohol.

 

The Typhoon Odette Emergency Response of REACH is funded by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) and is implemented by ACCORD Incorporated, Action Against Hunger Philippines, CARE Philippines, Community Organizers Multiversity, Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS) Inc., Plan International Philippines, Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), Save the Children Philippines, United Youth of the Philippines-Women and Oxfam Pilipinas.

Written by Joyce Sandajan

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