Help for typhoon victims continues to pour

By MADEL R. SABATER, JC BELLO RUIZ, and JONAS REYES

Following the orders of King Abdullah II Bin Hussein to help the victims of tropical storm “Ondoy,” the Honorary Consulate of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in the Philippines on Tuesday turned over 10 tons of relief goods to the Philippine government.

The 10 tons of relief goods is comprised of sleeping bags, blankets, shelter boxes, medicine and medical supplies, food parcels, and tea.

The shipment arrived Monday night at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) via Etihad Airways.

The turnover of the relief goods from Jordan was led by Jordan Consul General Michael Alexander Ang at the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-NAIA in Pasay City on Tuesday. A statement from the Royal Hashemite Court said that the relief aid is meant to “alleviate the suffering of people affected by the typhoon.”

Prior to the turnover ceremony yesterday, Philippine Ambassador to Jordan Julius Torres, in a send-off ceremony at the Cargo Terminal of the Queen Alia International Airport in Jordan last October 3, conveyed the Philippines’ gratitude for the humanitarian support extended by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan for the storm victims.

Aside from Jordan, other donors from the international community include the United States, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, France, Singapore, Germany, the European Commission, Canada, Vietnam, Spain, Switzerland, Czech Republic, as well as other United Nations agencies, and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

An international cargo forwarding company has offered free airfreight of all donated goods for typhoon victims by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

DHL in the Western region of Saudi Arabia approved the request of the OFW organizations in Saudi Arabia for free airfreight service for all the boxes of donated goods they have gathered for “Ondoy” victims.

DHL will have a special flight this Friday, Oct. 9 that will carry the donated goods according to Bobby Fajarito, Migrante-Jeddah chapter chairperson.

Also, the United States has bared that two US naval ships berthed inside this premier Freeport will be providing support to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to help in the rescue operations in the country.