Former Nsw Priest Kevin Lee Who Blew the Whistle on Child Sex Abuse in the Catholic Church Feared Dead in Philippines Typhoon

By Patrick Lion
The Herald Sun
November 10, 2013

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/former-nsw-priest-kevin-lee-who-blew-the-whistle-on-child-sex-abuse-in-the-catholic-church-feared-dead-in-philippines-typhoon/story-fnii5s3y-1226756769805

Former Sydney priest Kevin Lee has been killed by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.

[with video]

A FORMER NSW priest who blew the whistle on child sex abuse in the Catholic Church is among more than 10,000 people feared killed by the devastating Philippines typhoon.

Kevin Lee, formerly of Penrith, was believed to be living in the Philippines with his wife when Typhoon Haiyan hit, the ABC has reported.

Mr Lee, 50, blew the whistle on the abuse last year as he was also removed from his parish responsibility after admitting to marrying a woman in secret.

Philippine Community Council of NSW president Arturo Sayas, who returned from a family trip to Manila the day before the typhoon hit, said the group did not know the identity of the NSW man killed.

But he said the group had fielded up to 100 calls from relatives and friends based in NSW in the past few days worried about loved ones in the region.

"Some people are very worried," Mr Sayas.

"They keep on calling us and we just pass onto them any information we can get through media or social media.

"We keep monitoring what is happening there and we have friends communicating with us, though there is a problem in some of the outlying areas due to the typhoon.''

The death toll from one of the strongest storms on record that ravaged the central Philippine city of Tacloban could reach 10,000 people, officials said on Sunday.

Haiyan, one of the strongest storms to hit land in recorded history, is headed toward Vietnam and was forecast to reach the country south of Hanoi around 7am local time (11am ADT).

The estimate was made after the extent of massive devastation became apparent and horrified residents spoke of storm surges as high as trees.

Regional police chief Elmer Soria said he was briefed by Leyte provincial Gov. Dominic Petilla late Saturday and told there were about 10,000 deaths on the island, mostly by drowning and from collapsed buildings.

The governor's figure was based on reports from village officials in areas where Typhoon Haiyan slammed Friday.

Tacloban city administrator Tecson Lim said that the death toll in the city alone "could go up to 10,000."