PALO, Leyte, Philippines - – They first set foot on the shores of the Red Beach in this town 69 years ago to liberate the Philippines from the Japanese Imperial Army.
Today, they are the last men left standing after Typhoon Yolanda pummeled the province with powerful wind and waves that reportedly rose to as high as seven meters.
They refer to Gen. Douglas MacArthur and company, including Filipino statesman Carlos Romulo, whose iconic monuments mark the spot where the American liberation forces landed.
Nearby is the badly damaged Leyte Oriental Hotel, formerly MacArthur Inn and Resort, where some journalists tasked to cover the typhoon stayed but were confronted by the storm surge.
Palo, just like in October 1944, recorded a very high numbers of casualties from Yolanda’s fury.