The unexpected onslaught of torrential rains brought floods that devastated properties, took lives and almost destroyed the collective spirit of thousands of people of Northern Mindanao.
I visited Misamis Occidental last week. I personally saw the hopelessness, desperation and trauma of the victims of the destructive inundations that struck during Christmas Eve when everyone was supposed to be celebrating. The heavy downpour, caused by the so-called shear line, continued until its peak on the 26th of
December. The aftermath seemed like a warpath of thick mud, countless fallen trees, collapsed bridges and dikes, sunken vehicles, ruined homes and at least 26 casualties. More than P300 million worth of properties were lost, and more than 34,000 families were adversely affected by a natural phenomenon that was unexpected.
The most common sentiment of the people that I talked to was the sudden swelling of the rivers that was new to their experience. They have seen the floods of 2011, but nothing like the recent monstrous raging waters that brought along debris and huge rocks from the mountains that wasted everything along their way.
The presence of local leaders helped manage the dire situation. Almost all were in utter confusion during the heavy rains. Communication lines were still working but only to hear voices shouting for help and requesting to be rescued. In all directions, rescuers and victims were hardly confident that the situation will get better before it gets worse. The power supply was cut and added to the difficult efforts of surviving the long hours of endless downpour.
It’s good that the mayors and barangay officials were available in the vicinities and commanded possible efforts to help the people who were agonizing and facing possible death. A local mayor intimated to me his heavy feeling when he recalled that he was on the phone talking with a resident of a house that suddenly fell to the raging waters. The poor fellow, along with his sibling, was among the 26 casualties of this calamity.
In another town, a teenage resident lost his elder brother who was suffering from physical disability. He tried to hold his brother and save him from the force of the river but to no avail. This nightmare will haunt him almost forever.
I heard testimonies that the people have seen the selfless attempts of their local leaders to brave the challenging moments during the crisis. Barangay offi-cials and mayors were in the middle of the rescue efforts in spite of their limited resources and capabilities. There were not enough rubber boats to reach the houses that were on the verge of giving in to the currents. And even if there’s an available boat, the violent flow would almost surely result to more fatalities.
The rehabilitation process begins with the needed bayanihan. The best way to survive and rise again from the crisis is for the local leaders to orchestrate a common march to withstand the immediate trials of having no potable water, food, clothes and other basic provisions. Thousands of families had to be fed in the evacuation facilities. The logistical confusion in receiving, storing and delivering the needs of the victims must result to the upliftment and well-being of the families instead of aggravating the conditions, especially when the pandemic is still lurking.
I admire the managerial skills of Governor Henry Oaminal who personally directed the overall delivery of food packs, family kits and other basic necessities that came from the provincial program and from the national agencies such as the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Health and the Office of Civil Defense. To my surprise, I was glad to have seen the teams from far-flung Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) providing the much-needed potable water to many households. They were assisted by the personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Po-lice and the Bureau of Fire Protection.
I requested MMDA Chairman Don Artes and his assistant general manager Atty. Vic Trinidad to possibly extend the services of their MMDA water teams be-cause they are still needed. They agreed. The call of duty and the camaraderie are strong in this time of tragedy.
New protocols and warning systems needed. We must brace for the additional natural phenomena that threaten us. Our government must be able to soon integrate this “shear line” along with the other usual weather disturbances such as tropical typhoons or storms, and surges.
Being a tropical country, we have no choice but to fully live with these occurrences.
However, we must mitigate the impact of such natural weather disturbances with enough preparedness and institutionalized systems that can help save lives and properties.