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| Space Station view of Typhoon Haiyan next to Philippines. |
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| Wind measurements for the Island of Leyte where Sarah is located 120-200 mph with gusts to 260 mph. |
The death toll from what is thought to be the most powerful storm on record has now reached at least 10,000.
Typhoon Haiyan battered the Philippines with 170mph winds on Friday, swallowing coastal towns and leaving a trail of devastation in its wake.
Earlier estimates suggested 1,200 people had been killed but it has since emerged that 10,000 died in the central Philippine province of Leyte alone.
According to the police, up to 80 per cent of the area in the path of Haiyan in Leyte was destroyed.
"The governor said based on their estimate, 10,000 died."
At least 800,000 have fled their homes, while thousands of Brits are thought to be stranded in the Philippines.
2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. DataBlog 11/11/13
Typhoon Haiyan: how does it
compare with other tropical cyclones?
Typhoon Haiyan,
described as the as the strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall in recorded
history, hit the Philippines with winds of 195mph. How does it compare with
other tropical cyclones? |
| The eye of the storm went right over Sarah's area of service in Carigara on the Island of Leyte. |
Hitting the Philippines with winds of
195mph, typhoon Haiyan has been
described as the strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall in recorded
history.
The category five storm - which has also been called Yolanda in the
Philippines - is reported to
have had speeds at landfall of 195mph and gusts of up to 235mph, meaning
that it is believed to be stronger than the world's last strongest tropical
cyclone, hurricane Camille, which was recorded as making landfall in
Mississippi with 190 mph winds in 1969. 
The church website has released the following news and updates from 11/8-11/11, 2013 PST
Typhoon Haiyan Update: Church Leaders Establishing Contact with Members,
Missionaries
Salt Lake
City —
UPDATE (11 November 2013 -
10:45 a.m. MST) In recent hours, Church leaders have made significant progress establishing
contact with missionaries in the Philippines Tacloban Mission. All missionaries
have been contacted with the exception of 24 missionaries serving primarily in
one location where communications have been especially difficult. Church
representatives are doing everything possible to contact missionaries and have
been providing updates to family members of missionaries regarding their status
as soon as they become available. Local Church leaders continue to determine
the safety and well-being of Church members in the impacted areas and to seek
out ways to assist others affected by the typhoon.
UPDATE (10 November 2013 - 11:00 p.m. MST) Elder W. Craig Zwick, an executive director in the Church's
Missionary Department, reported this evening that, "Church
leaders continue to make contact with missionaries throughout the Tacloban
Mission in the Philippines, and all those we have been able to reach are safe.
We anticipate that as we continue to re-establish communication, the remaining
missionaries will be located and found well. We unite our faith and prayers
with others in behalf of the people of the Philippines."
UPDATE (9 November 2013 - 9:00 p.m. MST) In the hours following Typhoon Haiyan, Church leaders in Salt
Lake City have been in continual contact with regional Church leaders. Twenty
of the 21 missions in the area have reported that all missionaries are safe. In
the Tacloban Mission there are still some areas where communication has not
been re-established. Elder W. Craig Zwick, an executive director in the
Church's Missionary Department, reports that, “approximately two-thirds of the
missionaries in the Tacloban mission have been contacted and are well. We know
that all missionaries were provided a 72-hour kit, were moved to safe
locations before the storm and are in areas that were less impacted than
the city of Tacloban.” Continued updates will be provided as they become
available.
UPDATE (8 November 2013)
The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints expresses condolences to the millions affected by Typhoon
Haiyan in the Philippines and is providing shelter, food, water and other basic
supplies to evacuees and displaced families.
An estimated 700,000 people are
now displaced. In areas impacted by the storm, particularly in the eastern
coastal regions, transportation, power and communication networks are down.
All Mormon missionaries serving in the
Church’s 21 Filipino missions are accounted for, with the exception of some serving
in the Philippines Tacloban Mission. Before the typhoon, missionaries had been
moved to areas where they would be adequately sheltered, and the Church is
working to establish contact with Tacloban mission leaders.
“A Church Welfare Department employee
is traveling to the island of Leyte with communication equipment to establish
contact with the Tacloban mission president,” said Stephen B. Allen, Missionary
Department managing director. "We plan to be in communication with those
in Leyte by Saturday in the Philippines.”
Efforts are also underway to make
contact with Church members. More than 14,000 members and others have sought
refuge in 200 Church meetinghouses.
As daylight comes, the Church
anticipates that missionaries throughout the country will begin assisting those
in need.
Local Church leaders will spend the
weekend assessing further needs of both members and the community.
Praying for you Sarah and her companion!
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