The SVD Australia Province has launched a special appeal to raise funds for relief and rehabilitation activities for people hit by Typhoon Rai in the southern Philippines in December.

The Provincial appeal supports a worldwide fundraising effort by the Divine Word Missionaries to assist those in the Philippines who lost lives, homes and livelihoods when the typhoon caused widespread devastation.

The Category 5 Typhoon Rai (known as Odette in the Philippines) bore down on the islands of Visayas and Mindanao on December 16 and 17, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake, killing more than 400 people and affecting more than 1.8 million Filipinos. The typhoon brought torrential rain, strong winds, flash floods, landslides and extensive damage to homes, crops and livelihoods.

More than 600,000 people were evacuated, roads were impassable due to flooding and fallen trees and many communities were stranded without power, telecommunications and clean water.

SVD AUS Mission Secretary, Fr Viet Nguyen SVD, says the SVD General Council has called on all provinces to support the fundraising effort for victims of the typhoon.

“Particularly affected are parts of Mindanao, especially Surigao, then Leyte, Bohol and the whole south of Cebu Island including Cebu City,” he said.

“The government has declared a state of emergency for these areas. All our SVD community houses in Cebu and Bohol are partially damaged also.”

SVD confreres in the Philippines are hard at work doing cleaning work and helping their neighbours and mission partners and collaborators who lost their houses and property.

A letter from SVD Superior General Fr Budi Kleden said more and more people no longer have access to clean drinking water.

“There are long queues and panic buying in front of stores and gas stations,” he said. “It can take a long time until the power supply is restored. Since the internet and cell phones only work sporadically, there is hardly any contact with the outside world. Many families are desperately trying to contact their relatives on the neighbouring islands and also internationally.”

Fr Budi said he had been advised that food packages are urgently needed for about 5,000 families.

“The packages contain 5kg of rice, other basic foodstuffs and above all, drinking water,” he said.

“With this, the people can make ends meet for a few days. Help is also needed to purchase medications.”

The material damage in the areas the SVD are present has been enormous, he said.

“All our project areas on Cebu and also on the other islands are severely affected,” he said. “The huts on the garbage mountains (Cebu, Talisay, Mandaue, Mactan) are to a large extent completely destroyed.

“The same applies to the huts in other slums as well as in the fishing and small farming villages. The devastation resembles the situation on the island of Leyte after the super typhoon in 2013.

“The sidewalks of the city are crowded with people who have lost all their belongings. Also urgent, especially during the rainy season, are the repairs of houses damaged by the typhoon in our resettlement areas and the reconstruction of the huts of the fishermen, small farmers and garbage collectors’ families.

Fr Viet said funds raised by the AUS Province special appeal will go directly to the victims of Typhoon Rai, for the immediate distribution of food, water, medicines and other immediate needs; for the reconstruction of houses, as well as rehabilitation needs over the next two years.

Donations can be made securely online through the SVD website (select Typhoon Rai Philippines appeal in drop-down menu) or by mailing donations to Locked Bag 3, Epping, NSW 1710.