Pinoy community in France donates P250K to typhoon victims

MANILA, Philippines - The Filipino Community Associations in France donated P250,000 to the Philippine Red Cross for the victims of typhoon Yolanda, which has so far claimed 5,670 lives and caused P34.3 billion in damage.

Philippine Ambassador to France Cristina Ortega received the check, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported.

“I am very happy to receive this donation and will make sure that this gets to the victims of typhoon Yolanda through the Philippine Red Cross,” Ortega said.

On top of the donation made were fundraising events organized by the Filipino community in France, which included a concert last Nov. 19 at the American Cathedral in Paris. St. Bernadette's Church in the French capital was also opened last Nov. 16 for donations.

Since Nov. 9, the French government also operated its Crisis Center of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs to coordinate its aid efforts.

Officers from the French Civil Defense also arrived on Nov. 12 in Cebu with 10 tons of relief items. It was followed by 100 tons of relief items the succeeding week.

"The Mayor of Paris and the City of Lille and its environs have both donated 100,000 euros and 70,000 euros, respectively. French company Lafarge donated 1,000,000 euros coursed through its office in the Philippines, while the CEO of Schneider Electric donated 70,000 euros and offered to match the donations raised by its 120,000 employees in the coming days," the DFA added.