Reporter’s tweets showed first glimpse of Yolanda’s fury in Tacloban City

This image provided by NASA shows Typhoon Haiyan taken by the Aqua satellite Friday, Nov. 8, 2013, at 12:15 a.m. EST as it passed over the Philippines. A preview of “supertyphoon” Yolanda’s fury was the subject of the tweet sent from Tacloban City by Inquirer reporter DJ Yap at 7:24 a.m. on Nov. 8. AP

MANILA, Philippines—A preview of “supertyphoon” Yolanda’s fury was the subject of the tweet sent from Tacloban City by Inquirer reporter DJ Yap at 7:24 a.m. on Nov. 8.

“White view from fire exit window @ Tacloban hotel. Frenzied winds&water. Gonna take pic but window shattered after few mins water on 4th flr,” said Yap on Twitter.

Three minutes later, he tweeted again: “Sounds of glass shattering; hotel guests in lobby, restless, alarmed. `Jesus Christ,’ says our fotog Nino Orbeta. ‘Worse than Reming.’

What happened next was total silence from Yap and the rest of the media who were in Tacloban to cover “Yolanda” (international name: Haiyan). Yap would surface 30 hours later through a TV announcement by GMA 7 reporter Jiggy Manicad.

Described as one of the world’s strongest typhoons, Yolanda destroyed houses, cut down power and communications lines, and left thousands homeless. An initial report indicated over 100 dead, many of them children.

With communications lines cut off, netizens with relatives in the provinces on Yolanda’s path aired their appeal on the whereabouts of kin on social media.

“I would like to know the update on the situation of Licod, Tanauan, Leyte. My mom and the rest of my family are there,” Yepesbyjoo posted on the Inquirer Facebook.

“Kindly help us update our hometown Burauen, Leyte, all news is only Tacloban, Palo and other. But none on our hometown. Please I beg. All of us here abroad very worried and really disturbed by the fresh news from everywhere about casualties,” Oliver posted on the Inquirer Facebook.

Netizen happyDESPHY posted a call for help for Abuyog town in Leyte. “Help us,” she said with the hashtag #HelpAbuyogLeyte

Netizens from affected areas posted their own appeal for help by hashtagging their towns. By the evening of Saturday, the Twitter feeds were filled with such words as #HelpDaanbantayan  #HelpVisayas javascript:void(0);#HelpTacloban.

Pictures of missing persons were posted on Twitter by relatives.—With a report from Denison Rey Dalupang