Local Missionary Shares Story Of Typhoon Survival
FRISCO (CBS 11 NEWS) - After traveling across the world for the last few days, Cameron Johnson is finally home safe with his family in Frisco.
But the 21-year-old's mind is still with the people he left behind in The Philippines.
"The missionaries...we're not from there. We could get out. We could go home. But there are still a lot of people who need help," Johnson said.
Johnson was nearing the end of a two-year mission in Tacloban, for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, when the typhoon hit.
Johnson and a handful of other young missionaries were in the middle of it all – Tacloban is regarded as the hardest-hit city in the aftermath of the storm.
"I don't think I'll be able to forget a lot of things over there, nor the other missionaries. A lot of people saw things for the first time in their life," Johnson said.
To survive the storm on November 8, he says, they had to make a choice, of whether to stay in mission headquarters, or make it about 50 yards away, to a house on higher ground. The waters were rising high, and the winds outside were hurricane-speed.
"Really heavy rain, really heavy winds. Trees breaking over. Vehicles starting to move and the roof tearing off," Johnson said.
They made a run for it, and got to the home safely. It would be two days before the church was able to notify Johnson's parents that the Tacloban missionaries were alive.
"That was great, but there were still more details we'd like to have," said Steve Johnson, Cameron's father.
It wasn't until a photo appeared on Facebook, that the father knew his son was truly safe.
The picture shows Cameron and some of the other missionaries standing in the middle of a relief effort, helping distribute supplies and food to Philippinos.
"It was a lot of fun to see, because we knew deep down inside, he was being protected. He was fine, and he was doing what he needed to be doing. We didn't worry," Steve said.
For the next four days, the mission changed: Johnson helped pack and distribute relief supplies as it arrived from outside areas.
Getting out of the local airport was another story, however.
With no power, tickets were being issued on a first-come, first-serve basis, and the missionaries lost their seats on their scheduled flights home.
A U.S. Army Staff Sergeant, spotted the group of 60 or 70 missionaries trying to get to Manila, and offered to help. The soldier also happened to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and recognized the missionaries.
"They were flying planes in, US Marine Corps aircraft, and loading them up with priority Americans that were stranded," Johnson said.
By the end of the day, he was on a flight to Manila. It would be another week before he could get home to DFW. When he finally made it home, Johnson was greeted by a warm welcome at the airport. He'll spend the next month at home with family and then get ready to go to college.
Johnson says, the experience was one he'll never forget, nor the people he met, whose lives were impacted by the typhoon.
"I just don't want people to forget them. Yes the storm is over. The calamity is over. But the people there are still living through all of it. They still don't have food, power or water. It's not over for them yet," Johnson said.
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