Habitat for Humanity building permanent homes six months after Typhoon Haiyan
Habitat aims to build 30,000 homes in the Visayas for affected families
(Top) Lorelie O. Montaño, 15, and her sister Edilen, 9, and (bottom) Opelia Marcullo, 59, her husband Mario and their grandchildren were among the families who received shelter repair kits from HFH Philippines in its response to Typhoon Haiyan. Photos: Mikel Flamm/Habitat for Humanity International.
BANGKOK (May 8, 2014) — Global non-profit shelter organization Habitat for Humanity is progressing with construction of permanent homes at four sites in areas severely affected by Typhoon Haiyan. The typhoon that struck the Visayas area of the Philippines six months ago killed 6,300 people and damaged or destroyed more than 1 million homes, according to government figures.
“We broke ground on our first construction site in February 2014, just three months after Typhoon Haiyan struck, and then progressed to building homes at an additional three sites soon after. We intend to keep up this pace, and break ground at many more sites in coming months”, said Rick Hathaway, Habitat for Humanity’s Asia-Pacific Vice President.
“Alongside building permanent homes for families affected by the typhoon, we are continuing to distribute shelter repair kits. More funding is needed to carry on this work and reconstruction is likely to take many years. Habitat for Humanity is committed to supporting affected families in the Visayas for the long term,” continued Hathaway.
HFH Philippines aims to distribute more than 30,000 shelter repair kits and build 30,000 core homes, depending on availability of funding. Construction work has begun in Santa Fe on Bantayan Island and in Daanbantayan, both in Cebu, and at Tacloban and Javier, two sites on the island of Leyte.
Habitat started distributing emergency shelter kits just days after Haiyan struck, shifting to shelter repair kits as needs changed. To date, Habitat has supported nearly 18,000 families with emergency shelter and shelter repair kits.
“I was seven months pregnant when the typhoon hit. We went to another house to seek shelter. I was crying and in shock,” said Jovelyn Ypsor, 22. “We returned to find our collapsed home.”
Ypsor and her young family in Daanbantayan, Cebu, received a shelter repair kit from HFH Philippines.
“We repaired our house using the donated materials, incorporating parts of the old house. I am happy to have somewhere to rest and sleep. Our house is now bigger, and better than it was before. My dream is to have a concrete house, even if it is just partially concrete,” added Ypsor.
Donations can be made at http://www.give2habitat.org/philippines/ReBuildPhilippines.
In addition to operations to help families affected by Typhoon Haiyan, Habitat for Humanity Philippines has also started rebuilding thousands of homes in Bohol for families affected by the earthquake that struck on 15 October 2013.
Since 1988, Habitat for Humanity Philippines has played an active role in working with families to build decent homes. Through a network of project offices in rural and urban areas, Habitat for Humanity Philippines has built and repaired tens of thousands of houses.
Habitat for Humanity International’s vision is a world where everyone has a decent place to live. Anchored by the conviction that housing provides a critical foundation for breaking the cycle of poverty, Habitat has helped more than 4 million people construct, rehabilitate or preserve homes since 1976. Habitat also advocates to improve access to decent and affordable shelter and supports a variety of funding models that enable families with limited resources to make needed improvements on their homes as their time and resources allow. As a nonprofit Christian housing organization, Habitat works in more than 70 countries and welcomes people of all races, religions and nationalities to partner in its mission. Habitat has supported an estimated 1.5 million individuals in the Asia-Pacific region, where it has been active since 1983. To get more information, to donate or to volunteer, please visit habitat.org/asiapacific or follow us at facebook.com/habitat.