Philippines site ‘looks like a moonscape’

Where are those few survivors now?
There are 651 survivors from the village of Guinsaugon now living shoulder to shoulder at a Catholic high school in the town of St. Bernard. 

Most of these people are people who had left the village that morning to either go to school or work. Now they have nothing to go back to. A few of the people there are people who were actually rescued from the mud and they carry the scars of that experience.

There they are being cared for by nuns, the Marines, the International Red Cross and other organizations. But this is their new home. It just struck me looking at it that this high school is now Guinsaugon — everyone is here.

They are trying to process what has happened to them, and in helping them with that, the relief workers have been giving them some stress classes and have been listening to them, and getting them to talk a little bit about their feelings and what they’ve gone through. Basically, they are just there to support these people who are just a few days away from this catastrophic event that has so changed their lives.

The whole town now fits in a high school. That struck me when we walked up to the school.

In the short term, they are being cared for. The big question of course is what happens in the long term? They can’t stay at the school forever.

The question has been raised as to whether to relocate the town. Of course, for the moment, that question can’t be answered. It is still so early in the process, but it is clearly on people’s minds. What do they do now to rebuild their lives, which have been absolutely shattered?   

Have any of the people there started the mourning process or burial process for any of the few bodies that have been recovered?
Yes, some unidentified bodies were placed in a mass grave with a service officiated by a priest who was wearing a mask to ward off the stench. There have also been individual funerals.

This is a sad place because virtually all of the survivors have lost a lot. They not only lost loved ones, they lost their homes, they lost their businesses, they lost their farms, and really their lives have been upended. So, when you see them, you look in their eyes and the vacant stares tell you a lot about what they are going through. Clearly they are in shock.

The hardest thing to see are the children who are now orphans. Many children were in school, away from the village, when the mudslide hit. And so they survived, but their parents did not.

They are safe there and are getting a lot of food, clothing, and even psychological counseling, but you can tell that they are going through a very difficult time.

I saw an exchange where a social worker asked a child, “Who’s left?” And the little girl said, “Myself and my four brothers and sisters.” And the social worker asked, “What about your parents?” And the girl just shook her head, “no.”

Is there any sign of hope?
The real hope you see is in the relief effort. A lot of people have come in from far corners of the world to try to help these people.

The Marines today were playing with the kids. They were letting them listen to i-Pods. 

One Marine said, “Well I’ve got Ludicrous, and I’ve got some Snoop on here ...” and the kids seemed to love it.

They were also feeding them MRE’s (Meals Ready to Eat). Just like everyone else in the world, the kids didn’t seem to like what they were eating, but were enjoying the encounter with the Marines.

It seemed to seemed to bring them at least some relief. The Marines are really good with the kids and it was a nice gesture to watch.

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