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‘Save our baby’: Tales of hope amid Typhoon Haiyan tragedy

• 10,000 feared dead in Philippines typhoon
• Sydney-based Filipinos rush to assist
• Australian whistleblower among the victims
• Thousands evacuated as Vietnam prepares for worst

International communities are racing to send aid to the Philippines, with more than 10,000 and untold damage across the nation.

But even in the midst of the tragedy, a story of hope has emerged, with an 18-year-old woman giving birth shortly after Typhoon Haiyan struck.

A heavily-pregnant Riza Jaro and her relatives chanced upon a group of military rescue workers who used a folding bed to carry her to a makeshift medical station at the Tacloban airport where she went into labour, local news website the Inquirer reported.

I told him just save our baby and forget about me. I mean it’s, god’s, whatever god [wants] I will accept.

Airlifted to Cebu for the birth, Ms Jaro named her daughter Yoonadale, which is similar to the typhoon’s local name.

She had not been able to find a hospital to admit her as they were shuttered due to the destruction wrought by the typhoon.

Fellow Tacloban resident Faith Pelies’s baby was also saved in the typhoon.

“I don’t know how to swim, my husband knows how to swim,” Pelies told the BBC in an emotional interview.

“I told him just save our baby and forget about me. I mean it’s, god’s, whatever god [wants] I will accept.”

With power and mobile services still down, in a bid to get in touch with loved ones, survivors have been writing messages on scrap cardboard, paper plates and paper for Filipino news site GMA Network to publish.

While some expressed tragic messages, others were succinct with just the word “alive” beneath their names.

One family sent a message to Keith in Ohio: “This is Stephanie, our house was destroyed by the typhoon
baby almost drowned but thank God she is safe and we are all safe. We need help from you. We don’t have shelter we are in evacuation center this time. Thanks & God Bless. Stephanie & Bert, Palo, Leyte.”

Survivor Jeanette Bascal said the typhoon was “so painful” because there had never been a super typhoon in the Philippines before.

“It’s so scary, thanks to my dad because he knows how to swim, and I don’t know how to swim so I’m so blessed to stay alive.”

Extreme Storms cameraman Jim Edds filmed the typhoon and is reporting from the ground.

Taking photos of the debris, storm chaser Mr Edds says he left to post photos of the “dire situation”.

Posting pictures on Twitter of dead bodies on the street in the hours after the typhoon hit he tweeted: “I won’t post any more of those pictures. You get the message – the relief effort is shameful.”

Mr Edds posted he had counted 12 dead people within 300 metres of where he stayed. However, the US this morning sent military aid, while UN leader Ban Ki-moon promised UN humanitarian agencies would provide rapid relief.

 

 

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