A massive earthquake that hit the Philippines on Monday morning has triggered a significant response from a Santa Barbara-based international relief organization.
More than three dozen people died, and around 500 were hurt by the 7.8 quake near Mindanao Island. The numbers are expected to rise as first responders check more remote areas of the region.
"It was pretty impactful. It (the epicenter) was off the shore by about ten kilometers. The impact really affected the southern island of Mindanao, as well as up into the region where I am right now, in Cebu," said ShelterBox USA Vice President Matt Saxton.
He spoke to KCLU News from the ShelterBox warehouse in Cebu. Saxton said the disaster zone has been rocked by dozens of aftershocks.
"They continue to suffer from dozens of aftershocks, into the magnitude sixes. It's been over 200," said Saxton. "So, it's just a constant rumble down there."
He said ShelterBox quickly geared up to help.
"Our team is headed out to the area as we speak, and we are getting our warehouse prepared to move aid out down south," said Saxton. "It looks like the impact has affected about 145,000 people. There's severe structural damage in the southern areas of Mindanao Island."
The nonprofit is known for supplying tents, solar lights, and other essentials to people impacted by disaster or conflict around the world. They have a 30,000-square-foot warehouse in Cebu, with essential supplies prepositioned to help with major emergencies in the region.
"We have 30,000 units in a central warehouse on the island of Cebu," said the Shelterbox official. "It's the central part of the country, and really allows us to react and move things around the country, whether that's to the southern province, or the northern zone area. It's strategic for ShelterBox to have a location here. We responded to four events last year, two earthquakes and two typhoons. It allowed us to quickly deploy aid because of this warehouse."
Because the monsoon is underway in the Philippines, Saxton was there for some disaster-preparedness meetings. He’s shifted gears to help with the Santa Barbara nonprofit’s earthquake relief efforts.
The ShelterBox official said the organization's team will pay special attention to the need for relief efforts from Monday morning’s quake in rural areas. Saxton said the focus is often in urban areas.
Saxton said that with the large number of aftershocks, the need for tents and other supplies may continue for some time. He said many people are afraid to be indoors.
"Because of the island structure of the Philippines, the largest impact of the quake wasn't as severe in the central part of the country, in the central islands where I'm at," said Saxton. "But, it was quite severe there. It was the first day of school for primary and secondary schools. Schoolchildren were put out in the middle of the quads (the schoolgrounds) and out of the buildings. Because of the aftershocks, a lot of people are scared to go back into the shelter."
The organization has provided aid to the Philippines more than 30 times, helping with tropical storms, earthquakes, and volcanic eruption relief.
