Typhoon Haiyan
Typhoon Haiyan made landfall on 8th November 2013 and was one of the deadliest typhoons to hit the Philippines, killing over 6,000 people. Haiyan, or Yolanda as it is known in the Philippines, had sustained wind speeds of 190 to 195 mph when it struck, making it one of the strongest typhoons ever at the time of landfall. Leyte Island and the city of Tacloban and were overwhelmed with millions displaced and billions of dollars worth of damage sustained. What was left was a apocalyptic landscape bearing testimony to the supreme power of nature.
In 2012 the Philippines suffered the most fatalities from extreme weather events and was ranked the country second most affected from climate disasters. As climate change makes weather patterns increasingly unpredictable it is the people living in poor and vulnerable communities who are being disproportionately affected by floods, droughts and storms. As climate models predict ever more extreme and frequent weather-related events the growing reality is that those who have done the least to contribute to greenhouse gas emissions are the ones paying the heaviest price.