Nito na lang mga nakaraang mga araw natutuyo ang mga lansangan dito sa Metromanila- kainis lumabas ng bahay to commute- puddles of remaining floodwaters can still be seen from the malimit ay ukang aspalto ng mga kalye, hmp! Maputik naman in roads that are not asphalted or cemented.dagdag pa ditto is carrying a folding umbrella- just to make sure na di mabasa ang bumbunan pag anjan na naman ang ulan.Worse, sabi ng Pag- asa Weather Office, the rains will likely continue up to the first quarter of next year- hawa naman, pano ang Christmas at paputok sa Bagong Taon, hmp?
That’s me rambling at my shallowest…enumerating personal inconveniences kapag umuulan.
Because, sa totoo lang po, overall, thousandfold pa diyan ang pinadama ng malalakas na bagyong tumama this year sa ating mga kababayan. I therefore apologize for my kababawan.
Pedring(international name, Nesat) and Quiel (international name, Nalgae), the two typhoons that hit our shores in a span of one week(sa totoo lang, hours lang yata ang pagitan nitong dalawa- isang umalis at hayan na ang padating) brought a death toll of more than a hundred persons. Widespread flooding across northern Luzon caused homelessness to a few thousand and destruction of crops worth several millions of pesos. Nesat, which hit the country in September 27 and Nalgae, coming in in October 1 left behind crop damage estimated at $275million.
Meantime, a few dams in Central Luzon had to release water from the overflowing water reservoirs causing heavy flooding especially in Bulacan and other nearby provinces. My town of Camiling in Tarlac, for the first time was flooded due to the rushing waters from Pangasinan rivers. Pampanga experienced more destruction from the waters that came from Nueva Ecija and other provinces. Reports say that it will take at least a couple of months for the floodwaters to recede in these areas.
Warnings kaliwa’t kanan ang natatanggap ng affected families against health hazards- sa pagprepare ng pagkain, paggamit ng malinis na tubig, keepings surroundings clean, lalo na ang mga kasilyas at palikuran. PAANO KAYA yun, ask ng marami? Alang tubig sa gripo, alang kuryente, alang laman ang bulsa para sa maraming hinto sa hanapbuhay.
Ang hirap talaga, sabi nila.
At lalo pa akong nalalagim sa balitang malapit- lapit nang maging topnotcher ang The Philippines among the Most Vulnerable to disaster risks- ito ay ayon sa isang pag- aaral ng mga researchers ng United Nations.
173 countries were rated by the World Risk Index 2011 according to their ‘risk score’- posibilidad na tamaan ng mga natural calamities tulad ng earthquakes, bagyo, tagtuyot, etc.; kasama sa pagtukoy na ito ang kakayahan ng bawat bansa na tugunan ang mga pangangailangan kapag tumama na nga ang mga kalamidad na ito. Ang pag- aaral ay pinangunahan at pinamahalaan ng UN University Institute for Environmental Human Security (base- Germany). The results were released only last month (September).
Ano ba’t the Philippines placed third!!!Pumangatlo lang sa Vanuatu (the #1) and Tonga (2nd place)- 2 islands in the South Pacific Sea.
Ay naku, kamalas naman ng The Philippines! Bakit naman tayo pa?
Ang dahilan ayon sa mga syentista:
Our country lies within the Pacific Rim causing it to be exposed often to natural disasters. We are specifically in the western edge of the Pacific Ocean which is in the direct path of typhoons and monsoon rains. Idagdag pa natin ang pagkakapwesto ng ating bayan sa so called ‘ring of fire’- dito nagsasalpukan ang mga ‘continental plates’ na nagiging dahilan daw ng mga nangyayaring lindol at pagputok ng bulkan.
Heto po ang report ng ating bansa during the 1999 Regional Disaster Conference detailing the series of natural disasters that our country had to endure in the ‘90’s”:
‘…Data shows an upturned of disasters as the decade of the 90’s loomed. Impact of which exact tremendous toll on lives and properties, notwithstanding rollback gains in the economy out of proportion. Coinciding with the inception year of the IDNDR, the Philippines was hit by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake on July 15, 1990 killing 1,283 people and leaving three (3) cities in Luzon: Cabanatuan City, Dagupan City and Baguio City devastated at about P12.2 Billion estimated damages. In the same year, eight (8) strong typhoons hit the county, claiming 670 lives but registered at P12.8 Billion high in damages.
Not to be outdone, 1991 was the year when Mount Pinatubo erupted after 400 years of slumber where 850 people died. Dubbed as a disaster of global magnitude, it altered climatic conditions worldwide, and continues to reconfigure the terrain and landscape of the central plain of Luzon through the flows of lahar (Lahar I,Ⅱ and Ⅲ) brought about by the eruption. The geological changes caused by this volcanic eruption continues to bring disasters I Central Luzon with every rainy season. Cities of Olongapo and Angeles, where Clark Air Base and Subic Bay economic zones situated were greatly affected. On the other hand, though the smaller in damages amounting to P1 Billion, the tragic Ormoc City flashfloods left 5,101 people dead. So short a time, and with thin forest cover to serve as breakers, rain water brought about by tropical storm “Uring” gushed downstream, washed out and drown city folks into the sea.
Destructive typhoon, crossed the country, thirteen (13) in 1993 with 794 people dead and estimated P20 Billion damages. Again, in 1995, nine (9) of them killed 1,204 and destroyed P15 Billion worth of damages. Floods and landslides have also hit the country. In 1995, floods and landslides affected the islands of Mindanao and Negros.
The recent destructive natural phenomena that afflicted the Philippines 1998, is the impact of the El Niño Phenomenon. Around 985,000 families have suffered from starvation due to the severe lack of water affecting mostly farmers which subsequently reduced their income unable to purchase food at the household level in critical areas. ..’ (lifted from the Philippine Report for the 1999 Regional Disaster Conference held in Bangkok, Thailand on Feb. 1999.)
Twelve years have elapsed after this conference came up with recommendations on disaster- risk reduction for the Asian region. Dito sa The Philippines, marami- rami na rin daw mga plano- pero karamihan ay nasa drawing board pa nga lang. Sen. Loren Legarda, chair of th Senate Committee on Climate Change, laments that ang pinagtutuunan ng atensyon ay ang relief and rescue efforts matapos ang isang disaster. Hayan na ang mga trak- trak ng isinupot na instant noodles, lata ng sardinas, ilang kilong bigas, etc. para ipamahagi sa balanang sinalanta; pag medyo uminit, hayan na ang me dalang lata ng alkitran at kung anu ano pang gamit , including a pison, to fix an un asphalted portion of the road (eroded at natangay ng agos ng baha ang original aspalto kasi). Panahon na sabi nya, na we become serious and active in working on risk reduction. Oo nga naman- okay din naman to fill government bodegas to the rafter with de latas and other relief goods pero bigger attention must be placed on the more urgent concern of risk reduction practices and ways that can start with the ordinary citizen’s and the community’s efforts up to the more comprehensive national programs of concerned government agencies.
Oo nga, before we get to the top and be declared the most vulnerable to disaster.
Given na talaga at walang makapipigil- Physically, nakapwesto ang bansa sa isang lugar na kung saan it is exposed to natural disasters. These are varied ( bagyo, earthquake, volcanic eruptions, etc), come often, and many lash strongly.
We have got to live with it- gawan ng paraan to reduce risks to life and property, minimize destruction at least- this should be our main concern.
THANK YOU, TORONTO!
