The outer edges of the Arayat neighborhood were hit hard enough to break down concrete walls. Further inside, the landslide submerged houses to their roof eaves. Photo by Debbie DeVoe/CRS

This isn’t an easy entry to write. There’s a part of me that doesn’t even want to share the story of what I saw today. I had heard that 12 people had been killed by a landslide, but it wasn’t until I saw their submerged houses that the reality of that fact hit home.

The Arayat National Park is home to Mount Arayat, a mid-sized mountain that peaks out from mist, standing guardian to a neighborhood of close-set houses at its base. The park’s barracks were no longer needed by the government, so families had moved in, with 10 to 12 families living in each.

On September 26, 2009, when Typhoon Ketsana dropped more rain on Manila in one day than typically received in a month, the excessive water tore away at Mount Arayat’s degraded hillsides. A torrent of mud came tumbling down, wiping houses away and submerging the barracks until all that was left to see was the top roof eaves.
(more…)

CRS staff visited the Archdiocese of Tuguegarao after Typhoon Parma hit the Philippines. The delegation saw damaged houses, flooded streets, and destroyed rice fields.. Photo by Debbie DeVoe/CRS

This past Saturday, a second typhoon hit the northern part of the Philippines. Fortunately the impact was not nearly as devastating as that of the earlier Typhoon Ketsana on the greater Manila area. Typhoon Parma is still hovering over the region, however, causing concern that it will hit the north again—and perhaps harder.

Today, Catholic Relief Services staff and our Caritas Philippines partners visited the Archdiocese of Tuguegarao to tour some of the areas most affected by Typhoon Parma.

Father Manuel Catral, the archdiocese’s social action director, told us that he began contacting parish priests as soon as the storm subsided. A dozen dioceses have reported damage, with hundreds of houses destroyed and many more in need of repair. Diocesan staff provided food to people in immediate need and are now exploring opportunities to help families in the area repair or rebuild their homes.
(more…)

Tuesday, March 24, is World Tuberculosis Day.

Catholic Relief Services is providing tuberculosis treatment and care in eight countries, including the Philippines province of Maguindanao. The Maguindanao Province is one of the poorest provinces in the Southeast Asian country. The life expectancy is age 53, with tuberculosis as one of the leading causes of death. Throughout the province’s 28 communities, our health experts and local partners have devised a system that, in addition to upgrading health facilities, has drafted members of the community to fight the disease.
(more…)

Farmers in Impasugong, Bukidnon showing bulb onions grown under rainshelter. Photo by Randy Paler/CRS

It’s hard to tell from their humble appearance in American produce aisles, but onions are a finicky crop that requires particular conditions for each growing stage. Young plants need moisture to become sturdy and large, but the final month of growth must take place in much drier soil.

Some areas of the world are naturally suited to wet-followed-by-dry conditions, but in the tropical humidity of the Philippines, onion farmers are continually under threat of too much moisture during the final month before harvest.
(more…)