Rite Aid donates to Red Cross for Philippine typhoon-relief efforts

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid's philanthropic arm is donating $50,000 for relief efforts in the Philippines in the wake of the devastating Typhoon Haiyan.

The Rite Aid Foundation announced Wednesday that it would donate the money to the Red Cross for people and communities affected. The typhoon, which hit the Southeast Asian island nation Friday, left an estimated 582,000 homeless, according to government estimates cited by CNN, devastating communities like the city of Tacloban. Philippine president Benigno Aquino III told CNN that the death toll was likely to be around 2,500.

"Our hearts go out to the people and communities affected by Typhoon Haiyan," Rite Aid president and COO Ken Martindale said. "So many lives were forever changed as a result of this devastating tropical storm."