People across the world have been moved by the heartbreaking images of the ruins of Tacloban town,which was shattered by giant waves and winds that threw houses and trucks in the air like litter. The overwhelming natural disaster,caused by Typhoon Haiyan in the Visayan islands of central Philippines,has brought aid agencies,relief goods and donations from across the globe. This apocalyptic disaster,which has affected more than a million people,has resulted in intense suffering and grief.

This is not the first time,and it is unlikely to be the last,that international humanitarian aid has been needed by the Philippines. The country is regularly ravaged by typhoons,earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Because of the recent storms and earthquakes in the country,it was lacking the relief goods needed to meet the massive requirements generated by last Fridays disaster.

Hopefully,the international communitys support will continue even after the initial shock has worn away. Such support has not always been the norm. Only a year ago,Typhoon Bopha almost escaped the worlds attention,although its powerful winds destroyed the homes and livelihoods of millions of people in the southern region of Mindanao. Bopha was among last years biggest natural disasters anywhere on earth 1,200 people lost their lives in winds that peaked at nearly 200 miles per hour. The scene in the main town of Baganga was one of pure destruction. Coconut trees were lying on the ground,like discarded matchsticks,for miles. Trees continued to block the main roads of many communities even three months after the catastrophe.

Typhoon Bopha hit the Philippines at a time when the world was focused on the Syrian crisis. TV news was filled with the images of frightened Syrians escaping the civil war and fleeing to vast refugee centres. The world or global media only seems to have space for one humanitarian disaster at a time. Aid agencies were working hard on the ground in the Philippines. But the relief effort was made difficult by the lack of donations.

Even after the basic needs of food,water,hygiene and shelter have been met,vital assistance is needed by these communities. Such storms shatter livelihoods,including most importantly farming. It takes 10 years for new coconut trees to generate income. Fishing boats and equipment get swept away or destroyed. Nowadays,aid agencies help people struck by disaster by paying them to clear the rubble in their communities. People stay dependent on the aid until they regain the means to become self-sufficient.

As a result of the frequent natural disasters in the Philippines,relief organisations and machinery,although always lacking enough resources,are able to respond quickly. There is much emphasis and attention on saving peoples lives once a disaster has struck that is obviously the priority at such a time. But the question of how we can prevent the death and injury of so many people must also be explored.

After Bopha,I have seen the shattered homes and broken lives of the families living close to the sea and without hope in Mindanao. I have visited the slums of Manila after the water had receded from its three-meter height following the severe flooding in 2012. People had brought their children back inside their damp concrete-walled rooms. Babies were sleeping on makeshift flooring made of plastic and blankets. Televisions were left out to dry in the streets in the vague hope that they would still work. Household goods fished out of the filthy floodwater were being aired and recycled.

The common thread through these recurring sad circumstances is the lack of planning,combined with poverty and corruption. Although Manila is the most developed city in the country,it takes just a few hours of heavy rain for the rivers to flood the slums that people have moved to from the provinces,in a desperate search for work. The government has offered to relocate people from these flood-prone areas,but most are forced back to such urban slums because there are few jobs,schools or other social services in the rural areas. The infrastructure,which is fragile,also fails during natural disasters. During heavy rains,waste matter clogging waterways and rivers causes the water level to rise rapidly. The roads in the provinces are elementary. Many households still dont have electricity.

The Philippines estimates that Typhoon Haiyan will not have much of an impact on its high economic growth projected at around 7 per cent this year. The impact is small because the victims of the typhoon were mainly the poor. If poverty,infrastructure,corruption and housing issues were addressed,natural disasters would claim fewer victims and have less of an impact on communities and livelihoods.

The writer is a Manila-based journalist

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