#ondoy

[megu-nstp]

The first set of questions that we asked for the interview is done in order for us to find out the hazards that are present in our area. For the first question, we asked the Barangay official to share the calamities and hazards that the Barangay has experienced. He told us about the floods that were brought about by the super typhoon Ondoy. The Barangay was gravely affected by the typhoon since during that time, it wasn’t highly urbanized yet. 

NOTE: These photos were taken online.

[jenaspacio]

Hours since the #rain 🌧 has stopped but we’re still covered in #floodwaters 🌊 Unusual. A first since #ondoy. 😲 Do we #mope and be anxious, or pray 🙏🏼 and be hopeful, that this too shall pass? 😊 #DanceintheRain #flood

[tetay08]

SQUID BRITTLE w/ RED EGG. Crispy, tasty and interesting! So proud of you Jays... you're now a legit restaurateur! #ondoy's #squid #whatoeatph (at Ondoy’s Sugbahan)

[chiarikath]

Phenomenology about Environment

Isa ka ba sa mga taong sumasabay lang sa agos? Gumagaya lamang sa ginagawa ng nakararami? Tama nga bang magsawalang-bahala at mag-conform na lang sa kung anong nakasanayan ng lipunan?   Lumaki ako sa isang barangay na madumi at mabaho. Dito na ako sa Gulayan nagka-isip at nagkamuwang. Habang tumatagal ang panahon, hindi ko maiwasang magtanong. Kung bakit ganito? Bakit ganito ang kinagisnan ko…  …

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[marsymallows]

August Break 2016 | day 13

August Break 2016 | day 13

6 o’clock. My August Break is pretty messed up at this point. :P It’s either I don’t post on time or I don’t post anything at all. Typical me, but I’ll be sure to post 31 photos by the end of the month, a promise I’m making to myself this year. This is 6am just this morning during a very sudden and heavy downpour. It’s been raining like this for days, about a week, to be exact; although, looking…

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[hubmall]

Typhoon Ondoy Struck Philippines

Typhoon Ondoy Struck Philippines

Typhoon Ondoy Struck Philippines Many people lose their homes, cars and the hardest of all, their loved ones.  It was a tragedy.  If I am to describe it, it would be like NOAH’s time but what happened on Noah’s time was scarier.  Some areas in LUZON were flooded.  You would see in the TV the devastation brought by the typhoon.  Even those rich families who have lots of cars, they too were not…

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[lansangankid]

Recalling Ondoy.

Approximately six years ago, on one of the Saturdays of September, my family was eating palengke-bought lunch. Later that evening, we were on the roof, with neighbours we’ve never met, watching our village become part of the Marikina river. _____________________________________________________________________

Ondoy devastated most of my city and a great chunk of Luzon. It was the super typhoon of 2009. Our country suffered billions of pesos of lost and destroyed properties and the government reported 500 or so casualties nationwide. Personally, I think those numbers were grossly deflated. We also lost things that couldn’t be counted.

I live in Provident Villages, at that time, one of the worst places to be. The storm was supposedly just like any other. Metro Manila was only placed under signal number 1, and for a city that meets at least a dozen storms a year, you only cared for signal one if you lived near Taft or España. My family fell prey to complacency like most did. This caused us major trauma and great financial burden. I hated the rain for a year. Thankfully, all of my family members survived, including my unborn nephew and my lola in her late eighties.

The worst part of Ondoy wasn’t the rising of the waters. During the actual flooding, it was a mad scramble to get the televisions, laptops, and other appliances up the second floor. Even if it were possible to get some of the cars to higher ground, my dad wouldn’t risk leaving us behind. There were only a few moments for some panicked tears before we had to get as much food and drinking water out the windows, with us following through the fire escape.

We safely escaped being trapped in our home. An hour or so after sunset, everyone in our house was now on the roof with some neighbours who were swept towards us from the other street. This was the last place I expected the Filipino spirit to show, but there it was, and it was bright. Any sort of pretence was dropped and there was no need for introductions. Those who were grieving were consoled and those who were worried were comforted. Of course, we shared all the food we had, and later on even some jokes. Maybe it was a defence mechanism, but there was something funny seeing our cooler floating down the street. Ondoy taught me many lessons, one is that Filipinos are the best people be with during a storm.

We had to stay on the roof until morning. During the times when none of us were talking, after the initial relief, the sound of the slow moving river was eerie and discomforting. We were in the middle of a disaster, true, but outside immediate danger. I did not lose any family members, so the worst part of my night were the idle times. It made me think. I thought of how my dad worked all his life and how he must have felt seeing his property underwater. I thought about just how unsure I was about everything at that time. Worst, was how I wondered why the people who were asking for help were no longer shouting.

When the water levels went down, it left tons of knee-high mud. It was possible to wade through it, but my pregnant sister and my grandmother needed as much help as they could get. Soon enough, military men had stretchers to bring them to the military truck. It was a little bit of the Bayanihan spirit again, which we all needed.

The immediate aftermath was, as expected, widespread destruction. It was also the worst part. What was extremely unnerving was how the people wading towards the village exit were just so lost. There were military trucks filled with children, the elderly and injured survivors. Everyone else just walked dazed. They literally did not know where else to go. It looked exactly like a disaster movie, but it felt like how a kid was left in the supermarket after he cried and cried and couldn’t cry anymore. For some who lost their family members, it was a desperate search and for those who found them, it was either a slow funeral procession or a tearful reunion in each other’s arms. It is a feeling you will never forget.

Recalling Ondoy, as a whole experience will never be a happy one. But it doesn’t bother me as much as it used to. It is done. Perhaps people have moved on, and rightfully so, but I believe things like this should never be forgotten. There are so many lessons to learn looking back at past experiences especially after I’ve grown a few years older. Which is why I tried to blog, and with more stormy days ahead, I’ll share more of the lessons I’ve learned since what happened 6 years ago in a second post.

[onewordenglish]

Ondoy.

Bigla ko lang naalala ang bagyong Ondoy nung 2008 yata yun.

Saturday yun eh pero may pasok kami. Nacancel ang klase namin ng 11 am dahil nga maulan pero hindi naman malakas. Sa kadahilanang kailangan ko magharvest ng tanim ko sa farmville nagkayayaan muna kami ng mga friends ko na magpunta sa computer shop pagkatapos kumain. 2 hours siguro kami don pero pinalabas na kami ng may ari dahil bumabaha na daw sa labas. Paglabas namin baha na nga sa kalsada buti nalang may service na naghahatid papunta don sa may mall na malapit sa school. Pagdating namin sa mall wala ng mga jeep na bumibyahe dahil baha na nga. Sa Marikina kasi ang daanan ko pauwi buti nalang may tatlo akong kasabay na taga saamin din. Wala na nga daw dadaanan kaya nag isip kami ng alternative route para makauwi. Ayaw naman namin magstay sa mall kasi nagaalala kami sa mga pamilya namin. Nakasakay kami ng jeep na pahirapan pa hanggang sa LRT Santolan Station. Tapos pumunta kaming Cubao. Habang nasa train kami kitang kita namin ang baha sa may Marikina River nakakatakot. Mula Cubao sumakay kami paCommonwealth. Basang basa na kami non kahit may payong kasi sobrang lakas ng hangin. Sobrang siksikan sa bus na nasakyan namin kasi nga konti nalang nagbbyahe. Nakababa kami sa may malapit sa UP Campus, may mcdo don kaya nakakain muna kami. Wala na ulit masakyan kasi gang tuhod na tubig sa kalsada kaya nilakad nalang namin hanggang sa may jeep na ulit na pwedeng masakyan. Sobrang layo ng nilakad namin.

Pagdating namin ng Batasan Hills sobrang dami ng tao at baha na din sa may San Mateo Bridge. Sobrang taas ng tulay na yon mas mataas pa sa mga bahay pero inabot na ng tubig. Balak namin tawirin pa din ang tulay, kasi paglampas non pwede na kami makauwi. Nasa gitna na kami sobrang nakakakaba kasi medyo madilim na at mahaba ang tulay at ang lakas ng alon na may konting tubig na sa ibabaw ng tulay tas kitang kita namin ang mga lubog ng bahay. Buti nalang naisipan namin wag na tumuloy umatras kami kasi ayaw sumama ng dalawa naming friend kasi biglang tumaas ang tubig. At pagkalampas ng tulay na yon baha din pala at don madaming namatay.

Nakitulog kami sa bahay ng tita ng friend ko na nalapit doon. Natulog kaming basa. Tapos di kami makacontact kasi lowbat tapos brownout pa. Balita na non sa labas na ang dami ng namatay na nakatira don sa tulay na yon. Kinumagahan wala ng ulan kaya umuwi na kami at naglakad lang dahil walang madaanan ang mga jeep dahil sa mga putik at mga nasirang bahay tapos may mga patay pa sa kalsada :( Grabe talaga ang paligid sirang sira dahil sa ulan. Habang naglalakad ako malapit na samin kinakabahan ako baka kasi nasira na ang bahay namin o may kung anong nangyari. Bawat madaanan ko, kakaiba na hindi yun ang lugar namin sirang sira eh. Buti nalang yung bahay namin di naman nasira pero pinasok ng tubig. Pagkakita ko sa nanay ko niyakap nya agad ako tas pinaligo nya ko kasi ang baho ko daw :( HAHAHA.

Isa talaga yun sa di ko makakalimutan. At hanggang ngayon nagpapasalamat pa din ako na hindi kami tumawid sa tulay na yon.