Members of Yukon’s Filipino community sending aid to areas of Philippines ravaged by Typhoon Kalmaegi

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Members of the Yukon’s Filipino community are stepping up to do whatever they can to help support family and friends in the Philippines affected by Typhoon Kalmaegi.

It’s just days since the storm touched down in central Philippines, leaving at least 188 people dead, 135 missing, and millions of people displaced in what is being described as the deadliest natural disaster to hit the country this year.

Dawson City, Yukon, resident Aira Perucho is 17 and she’s well aware of the devastating reality many are facing in the Cebu area. Her family’s home is among those that were destroyed.

“My cousin’s brother saw that a tree was about to fall over and rushed his whole family and the rest of my relatives out of the house,” Perucho said. “The tree mainly hit my [other] cousin’s room. She was in her room that she shares with her daughter at the time so it was really amazing that they caught it on time. “

Perucho said the house eventually collapsed from the force of the storm. She said the only thing her family could save was themselves, and a few pillows.

It was immediately after Perucho saw a picture of her family sitting around a pile of their damaged belongings that she decided to start an online fundraising campaign. She wants to raise $5,000 to help build a space where her family can stay. She said any additional money raised will go toward helping neighbours.

“At first I wasn’t going to, because we were like, ‘oh, what if people like, maybe they don’t want to help, or we might be bothering them,” Perucho told CBC News. “Like, this is a Philippines issue, not really a Canada issue, but we just did it anyways.”

She said the response has been “way better than we expected,” and they’re already more than halfway to their fundraising goal.

A photo shared by Aira Perucho’s cousin in the Philippines shows the aftermath of Typhoon Kalmaegi. (Azelah Garita)

She said her relatives in the Philippines are “insanely grateful.”

“Some of them were even crying tears of joy. The Philippines isn’t the richest country so it would have been extremely difficult for them to come up with this money on their own to rebuild their house.”

Perucho said knowing that family and friends in the Philippines are suffering while she is safe in Canada is “not a really good feeling.”

“Hearing and seeing all of the damage done to other people in our area makes me want to help,” she said.

‘Hearing and seeing all of the damage done to other people in our area makes me want to help,’ said Perucho. (Azelah Garita)

Dominic Pelayo, president of Yukon’s Canadian Filipino Association in Whitehorse, said his organization just finished a fundraising effort for people affected by an earthquake in the same area less than a week before the typhoon hit. He said the Philippines is prone to natural disasters but back-to-back weather events are devastating.

“The [typhoon] victims are in dire need of basic food, shelter, and clothing,” Pelayo said. “Can you imagine? Not only a few families, but areas, like the Cebu provinces, north and south areas, were hit.”

Like Perucho and many other Filipinos in the Yukon, Pelayo has family members who are now dealing with the aftermath of Typhoon Kalmaegi. He said he received a call from one of his friends who described what was happening as it was unfolding.

“He contacted me because I also have a friend who owns a boat … and he was hoping I could contact him for a rescue because they were staying on the second floor and others were on the roof,” Pelayo recalled.

A photo shared with Dominic Pelayo, president of Yukon’s Canadian Filipino Association, by a friend in the Philippines, shows some of the damage from Typhoon Kalmaegi. (Jasper Amorin)

Pelayo said the images of the devastation, and the stories he’s heard from his friends and family in the Philippines, have prompted him to travel there with money and supplies next month.

“I already have my ticket,” he said. “I cannot promise to help everyone, but I can extend some help.”