IAFF Members Ready to Assist the Philippines Following Typhoon Haiyan

November 13, 2013 – Relief is slowly making its way to the Philippines after the country was devastated by Typhoon Haiyan on November 8. As airport runways open and roads are cleared of heavy debris, IAFF fire fighters who are members of Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams will likely be deployed to the most affected areas. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has not announced any projected departure dates.

“As they did in the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, our members are ready to leave at a moment’s notice to provide life-saving assistance,” says IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger. “Our thoughts and prayers will be with the citizens of the Philippines as they spend the several months, possibly years, recovering from this catastrophic event.”

The United Nations estimates more than 11 million people have been affected by the typhoon with 670,000 left homeless. The official death toll has passed 2,200 and is expected to rise substantially because many citizens did not evacuate, believing that they could survive the storm.

The United States, Canada and several other governments have released millions of dollars in emergency aid. However, but first-arriving military personnel and rescue workers are having difficulty reaching the most devastated areas as communication lines are down and debris and standing water have made several roads impassible.

The IAFF will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.

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