BAGUIO, Philippines (BNc) – In the face of the destruction from two typhoons, Ondoy and Pepeng, the church in Mangaldan has been busy help typhoon victims. Typhoon Ondoy was the previous typhoon that hit Manila. The typhoon referenced in this report hit the center of Luzon (Island). Mandaldan is several kilometers north of Manila, near Lingayen Gulf.
Kenneth Thomas, a Tennessee Christian who has preached in meetings in the Philippines, forwarded this information to Brotherhood News. “The Mangaldan church building was flooded, but because it is a two-story building, the second story served as an evacuation point for about seven families from the members and neighbors. The streets were up to chest deep. In one barangay [neighborhood] alone there were 21 persons who drowned.”
A former preacher for the Mangaldan congregation, David Quidem, sent the following account to brother Thomas:
“Typhoon Pepeng returned and hit our place in Mangaldan from Monday until Friday. Heavy rainfalls continued until the afternoon. The water reached the road around 6 p.m.
“The water was rising so fast I brought my motorcycle inside the house thinking that the water wouldn’t reach it, but I was mistaken. When the water entered the house, my family decided to transfer to my sister-in-law’s house because her house has a second floor. The water inside our house reached about 1 meter high. The furniture, clothing, appliances, some of my books, and even the motorcycle were all flooded. The water along the road is about 6-7 ft high. Dagupan City and Mapandan (5 ft) was flooded also. The Mangaldan church of Christ had water 5 ft deep.
“The water continued to rise until 2 a.m., so we watched without sleep. Around 4 a.m. the water stopped rising, so I concluded that this was the final stage. Every hour the water gradually subsided until about 7 a.m. I returned to the house to see what happened. The worst thing that we will need to do is removing the mud and cleaning up. As of now, we don’t have electricity in our area.
“My nephew’s house was totally submerged. None of them got hurt because they had moved to our family home. I am still grateful to the Lord that all my family is safe, even my relatives who were most affected.
“We also experienced what Metro Manila experienced with the typhoon Ondoy. Yesterday I went to Municipal Hall and saw a long line of people waiting for relief goods from the government. The public market was flooded and some of the brethren who owned stores were selling rice. One of the brothers came to me yesterday asking for help. His entire crop was destroyed. The same thing happened to other brethren. Along the highway are destroyed properties. I don’t know the conditions of the brethren in Dagupan City and Mapandan yet.”
Junas Sagurit, a preacher for the Mangaldan church reported:
“The eldership of the Mangaldan congregation decided to spend all the remaining church money to help the typhoon victims. We are hoping for your continued prayers for all the people affected by this tragedy.”
Carl and Don Walker, preachers in Georgia, are right now serving in that area with medical and evangelistic work.
Don reported on Facebook, “Just finished a great day with the Medical Mission at Salumonge Sur in the Philippines. The doctors saw over 1000 people and the pharmacists filled over 4500 prescriptions. Best of all we have had 47 baptisms in the last 3 days! Keep us and these folks in your prayers.”
An update from Don on October 22 reported, “As of Thursday afternoon, there had been 73 baptisms on this medical mission–which is healing many souls as well.”
