A Red Deer man is breathing a sigh of relief after finally hearing his wife’s voice from the Philippines early Monday morning.
Tom Karashowsky, 55, said he received a phone call around 5 a.m. on Monday from his wife Jocelyn. She called from a relief area in Calbayog, where she was evacuated after the storm hit on Nov. 8. He said she and her children are OK but are very shaken.
“They are surviving on rice, noodles and water, all supplied by relief workers, which I am very grateful for,” he said. “They tried to wait out the storm in the cement and block house but the water kept rising. The roof blew off. A palm tree fell and destroyed one wall.”
Karashowsky said his wife and four-year old twins escaped to higher elevation and hugged a palm tree until help arrived.
Karashowsky said he is relieved his wife and her daughters are safe and they can replace everything they lost.
Jocelyn was waiting for her passport in order to come to Red Deer when Typhoon Haiyan hit on Nov. 8.