OneWorld.net (U.S.)

WASHINGTON, Oct 3 (OneWorld.net) - Aid workers around the world have become accustomed to mounting quick responses to save lives and protect the vulnerable after natural disasters, but this week has been particularly intense.

What's the Story?

Residents of Los Baños and Bay towns, about 60 kilometers south of Manila, cope with floodwaters that have not receded three days after Typhoon Ketsana ravaged the Philippines. © IRRI Images (flickr)"For us it's all hands on deck," said Oxfam America's director of humanitarian response Michael Delaney Wednesday. And that was before the latest storm struck.

It started on Monday, when Typhoon Ketsana swept across the Philippines and barreled over the South China Sea into Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos; the high winds and downpours caused the worst flooding in 40 years in the Philippines, left hundreds of thousands homeless across the region, levied over $100 million in damage, and killed over 400 people in the four countries. About 80 percent of the sprawling city of Manila was under water at one point. Hundreds remain missing, nearly a week later.

Then on Tuesday the low-lying Samoan islands and Tonga were slammed with four tsunami waves generated by a magnitude-8.0 earthquake under the South Pacific sea. Waves as high as 20 feet reached as far as a mile inland, sweeping away homes and possessions and killing at least 180, though the death toll is expected to rise as more information is gathered from the remote islands in the coming days.

Another powerful quake -- not related to the first -- struck the Indonesian island of Sumatra on Wednesday, collapsing buildings in the regional capital city of Padang and causing landslides in coastal cities and towns. Thousands remain missing and over 700 already confirmed dead, as rescue teams continue to search through the rubble of over 20,000 collapsed houses and buildings. The magnitude-7.6 earthquake was followed just a few minutes later by a magnitude-6.2 quake, and then a magnitude-6.8 quake early Thursday morning.

Back in the Philippines, Typhoon Parma followed grievously in Katsana's wake this weekend, but mercifully skirted away from Manila, which was hardest hit by the earlier storm. Parma struck the northern part of the island chain on Saturday, knocking over trees and destroying power lines, but its super-typhoon-strength winds softened before making landfall, and only a handful of people were believed killed, according to early reports from the region.

Parma is now headed toward Taiwan, where villages have been evacuated.

And yet another menace looms: Typhoon Melor has formed in the South Pacific Ocean and is expected to blast the U.S. territories of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands over the weekend. U.S. government first responders are already stationed on the islands with food, water, blankets, and power generators, and residents have been urged to gather in local schools designated as storm shelters.

Aid Groups on the Ground Across Region

Some 20 typhoons generally touch the Asia-Pacific region each year, but it is rare for so many high-profile disasters to separately impact a region within one week.

Mercy Corps Indonesia's Malka Older reported Friday that her team in Padang is "working hard in the heat and with no electricity or running water in our office." Older added that the response team "look slightly worse for the wear but are full of spirit and eager to keep going on the response."

Since the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004, countries have ramped up efforts to prepare for disasters ahead of time, putting in early warning systems and creating disaster preparedness agencies. But they have not done enough to prepare local communities, who are usually alone in mounting initial responses when disasters strike, Mercy Corps' president Nancy Lindborg told CNN this week.

To help fill that gap, international humanitarian groups have been working with local communities around the world, ensuring local people know what to do when disasters strike and trained aid workers and supplies are stationed nearby.

Oxfam, for example, had pre-positioned 5,000 tarps and other emergency stocks in Padang, which has been struck by many natural disasters in recent years.

And by Thursday, Oxfam's team in the region was already handing out emergency supplies in Samoa and Tonga for up to 10,000 people.

But there can be no doubt this most recent cascade of disasters is stretching aid groups' capacity to help those in need.

This week’s emergencies come as Oxfam and many other groups are already responding to several other ongoing weather-related events around the world -- including a crippling drought in East Africa, floods in West Africa, and drought in Central America.

"This is a time of great need around the world, and particularly in the Asia-Pacific region," said Oxfam's Delaney, adding: "Americans have always shown incredible generosity when disasters strike."

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OneWorld partners are providing assistance across the Asia-Pacific region.

Lutheran World Relief (LWR)

LWR is working to provide food and other essential items to over 17,000 families in villages in the Philippines not yet reached with humanitarian aid. In cooperation with other members of the global aid alliance Action by Churches Together (ACT) International, LWR is targeting 40 villages outside of metro Manila with relief efforts. LWR will provide essential items such as filtered water, rice, fish, and cooking oil, as well as blankets and mosquito nets to affected families. Learn more or support this work.

Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is channeling aid to Samoa through its local partner on the ground, South Pacific Business Development, which provides group loans to poor women in villages throughout the islands.

In Indonesia, Mercy Corps’ response includes distributing shelter items and other relief supplies and helping victims get access to clean water. The group is also coordinating with other responders and authorities to assess needs and help to fill them. Learn more or support this work.

Oxfam America

When disaster-affected people have to move into crowded, makeshift camps, conditions can jeopardize public health. Outbreaks of deadly waterborne diseases like cholera can compound the original emergency with a health crisis.

Oxfam specializes in providing clean water and sanitation facilities in emergencies, and we are moving quickly to meet these and other needs in the Ketsana-affected areas. Oxfam is helping 25,000 of the worst-affected families in the Philippines by providing clean water and emergency materials like blankets, soaps, cleaning equipment, clothes, and water containers.

Oxfam is responding to the South Pacific tsunami with emergency supplies for up to 10,000 people and expects to help coordinate the supply of clean water and sanitation for those affected by the disaster.

And Oxfam's emergency response team in Indonesia is joining staff from local partner organizations who are distributing Oxfam's pre-positioned emergency stocks, including 5,000 tarps for shelter. Learn more or support this work.

GlobalGiving

GlobalGiving is an online marketplace that connects you to the causes and countries you care about. You select the projects you want to support, make a tax-deductible contribution, and get regular progress updates -- so you can see your impact.

Donations to the Disaster Relief Funds for the Philippines, Vietnam, the South Pacific, or Indonesia will support relief efforts on the ground to provide vital supplies for hundred of thousands who have been impacted by the storms and quakes. Learn more or support this work.

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