UAE | General
Coordination vital to avoid chaos in relief efforts
Taking responsibility for specific needs works best
- By Janice Ponce de Leon, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:00 December 22, 2011
- Image Credit: AFP
- An elderly woman affected by the devastating flash floods queues up to receive relief foods at a covered court serving as a evacuation center in Cagayan de Oro City, in southern island of Mindanao on December 22, 2011. Survivors of devastating flash floods in the southern Philippines face growing threats from disease, officials warned on December 21 , as the toll of dead and missing tops a thousand.
Dubai: As the Filipino community in the UAE began receiving donations in cash and kind for victims of typhoon Washi that devastated the southern Philippines earlier this week, an emergency management specialist shared some insights for a more effective crisis response.
"All the groups that wish to help the victims should coordinate with each other and consolidate their efforts to avoid duplication," Arnel Capili, a corporate emergency management specialist for Dubai Municipality, told Gulf News.
All the 50 boxes distributed in Dubai and Sharjah can be filled with up to 80 kilograms of relief goods. Our pick-up date for the boxes is scheduled on Friday
The Philippines was placed under a state of national calamity on Tuesday. The death toll from Typhoon Washi (locally known as Sendong) went past the 1,000 mark, officials said yesterday, admitting it could rise as more bodies began washing ashore. Officials also said that flood survivors face a growing threat of disease, including cholera and typhoid.
Many Filipino groups have responded to the call to help typhoon victims by sending cash and collecting donations in kind. While cash donations are the most important, donors may also give blankets, clothes, slippers, and toiletries.
Company's gesture
LBC, the largest courier company in the Philippines, said that its Dubai branch has already distributed more than 50 jumbo boxes among interested donors since yesterday. LBC branches in Dubai and Abu Dhabi will ship and distribute these boxes for free in the Philippines.
Related Links
"All the 50 boxes distributed in Dubai and Sharjah can be filled with up to 80 kilograms of relief goods. Our pick-up date for the boxes is scheduled on Friday," Roldan Vergara, LBC area head in Dubai, told Gulf News. But the contents of these boxes should be monitored and segregated beforehand, Capili advised. "If we send goods without segregating them, it's going to be a logistics nightmare for our field workers and will consume time before they can be distributed."
Capili said that to maximise relief efforts, it was best if a certain group focused on a particular need.
Avoiding waste
"I have encountered situations where donations from well-meaning individuals or groups can actually hamper relief operations simply because what they gave was unnecessary or inappropriate. I have personally seen boxes upon boxes of donated goods go to waste and occupy valuable storage space simply because they cannot be distributed," Capili said.
The Philippine Consulate General in Dubai, meanwhile, issued an advisory directing all donation enquiries to the National Disaster Risk Reduction management Council, Philippine Red Cross and other such organisations. It also mentioned that sending used clothing as relief goods is prohibited as per Republic Act 4653.
Making your help count
- Cash is preferred. It gives the people on the ground flexibility to decide what is most needed.
- If you intend to donate food, make sure you send foodstuff with at least an year to the expiry date.
- If you intend to donate clothes or shoes, make sure that they are appropriate.
- Personal hygiene supplies are necessary. The need for sanitary napkins for people in evacuation centres is often overlooked.
- Flashlights, rechargeable lamps, transistor radios, first aid kits, etc. are some useful items.
More from UAE General
More from UAE
Latest news
- Tracks to be laid on recycled material
- Golden Hour crucial to a patient's survival
- Opening show worthy of UAE
- Sun is shining on prospects for solar power
- Artists focus on craftsmanship
- World leaders committed to supporting civilians
- Schools open a new page in teaching English
- Special parking to help disabled tourists
- Helping hand surgeons have long sought
- Blind woman lights up corridors of power
- In Mind
- At times, I think of committing suicide
- Designer of a creative haven
- Fund to help Dubai taxi drivers' families
- New life-saving fleet of vehicles
Community Reports
-
Warming up to ‘Mobilise the Earth' theme
Dubai school dedicates a whole week to celebrating Earth Day with can-collection drives, sapling plantation and painting competition among others
-
Drivers using mobiles put others' lives at risk
Speeding is dangerous for the driver and other motorists
-
Supporting the needy with food supplies
Group of families engaged in serving isolated labour community hopes to motivate more people to help underprivileged and hungry
-
Leukaemia boy granted wish to meet footballer
Emirati meets hero Al Qahtani, Al Ain team
