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Typhoon Sendong

Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012.

Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012.

Clothes dry around a statue inside an evacuation centre. Mindanao, Philippines

Typhoon Sendong devastated Northern parts of Mindanao in the Southern Philippines on 17th December 2011, killing an estimated 1200 people. The total number of affected persons ranges between 70,000 - 340,000. One month on many remain in evacuation centres & temporary shelters that struggle cope with demand. Illegal logging along side mining and industrial plantations are cited as a significant cause for the floods which resulted in the largest disaster in the Islands memory, despite the relatively small size of the typhoon.

Young girls cross a river in Northern Mindanao. The floods worst hit communities were those living on the riverbanks. The President has blamed families for living in flood prone areas. However, years of forced eviction and land grabs have forced citizens to inhabit such locations, as available land for impoverished people is limited Residents of Hinaplanon region receive Psychological support from NGO workers. The district was one of the worst effected areas in Illigan city. Washing dries on a line between trees, Santiago district. Hundreds of people died in this area as logs from the hinterlands destroyed houses and floods washed people out to sea. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Santiago, Illigan City. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. A man recalls the floods in one of the worst affected areas of Illigan City. One month after the floods the clean up continues. Illigan City East High School has been transformed into an evacuation center housing 375 families. Students study out side, as classrooms have become temporary housing units. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Students attend class, Illigan City East High School. The school has been transformed into an evacuation center housing 375 families. Students study out side, as classrooms have become temporary housing units. Mass graves for unidentified victims of Typhoon Sendong that killed an estimated 1200 people. Christian Missionaries have been active in providing aid for the survivors of the floods, as local Governments cannot cope with the demand for support. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Children wait to receive supplies from UNICEF. Bukidnon Region. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Nuns visit a remote village to distribute aid from UNICEF. Mindanao Island is extremely fertile. Many citizens rely on farming as a source of livelihood. The floods have washed away much of the soil needed to farm, along with crops, seedlings and livestock. Remote villages are now dependent on donated food supplies to survive. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Loggers move timber, Butuan. Despite logging permits revoked by the Government, companies continue to fell trees. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Many of the loggers understand the environmental concerns surrounding logging, but have little other opportunities for employment. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. Pineapple plantation, Bukidnon. International corporations such as Del Monte use vast areas of land to produce cash crops. Environmentalists have claimed that the methods of irrigation along with the destruction of forestry to farm large areas of land increased the surface run off and aided the flow of the floodwaters. Destroyed houses, Bayug Island. Communities struggle to return to normal after the Typhoon Sendong disaster in Dec 2011 killed 1200 people. Mindanao, Southern Philippines, 2012. A Mentally ill man receives counseling from a nun. Though unstable prior to the floods, the man has since deteriorated and is suicidal. Hundreds of people died in his village during the floods.