Amos: More assistance needed to help Haiyan victims

The UN top humanitarian official Valerie Amos on Friday said the appeal she launched last week for the victims of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines has now been updated from USD 301 to USD 348 million for additional relief projects. "A massive disaster like this requires a massive response," she told a press conference following two visits to the Philippines which was slammed by one of the "largest storms on record," affecting five major islands of an area of 57,000 square kilometres with eighteen million people. Quoting government figures, she said more than 5,200 people were killed by the Typhoon and the number is increasing by the day as rescue workers continue to reach communities on remote islands or in mountainous areas. "The severe winds and storm surge wiped out entire towns. Millions of people have been affected, over five million of them children. More than four million made homeless, with more than a million homes destroyed or damaged," she added. She praised the Government for having "one of the best disaster management systems in the world," but, she continued, "the sheer scale of this Typhoon and the storm surge which accompanied it in some places, would have tested any country." She said the Government, the Red Cross and other national and provincial agencies quickly mounted a rescue and relief operation the morning after the storm, with the support of the international community. "However, much more needs to be done. Food, clean water and shelter remain the top priorities," she insisted. She expressed concern that limited fresh water supply and poor sanitation "pose a serious threat of disease. Larger supplies of hygiene kits, chlorine tablets, and temporary emergency toilets are needed to help prevent outbreaks of water-borne disease."