Ondoy
First off: I'm okay.
Yeah, I know I've been offline for the past two weeks due to laptop woes, but immediately after I get my laptop back -- to the day, to be exact! -- something else hits my city. Tropical depression ONDOY.
International name: Ketsana. Yes, I must regret to announce, it came from Japan. And like many things that come from Japan, it was big, fast, terrifying. And deadly.
Here's what happened to me in the last couple of days.
As most disasters go, it started innocuously enough. On Friday afternoon, my friends lushlush and loveisrationed were already hanging out watching a Korean art house film at the nearest mall while I was baking my butt off. Surprisingly, though, I finished early, so I had time to rush off to pick up my laptop from the computer shop *yey for Apple Care Plan, I got a new Logic board, keyboard and battery without extra charges!* and to meet my buddies.
We had dinner, then coffee and dessert afterwards. From the windows of the cafe, we watched it rain. And rain. And rain. It seemed to have been raining all day, which is always a bad sign in Manila, especially on a Friday night when everybody is a rush to go home (or party.) Since there was a good chance they would have to wait 30 minutes or more for a cab or a bus, I suggested they crash at my house. Nothing unusual there, really.
I am SO GLAD I didn't suggest driving them home.
When we all woke up on Saturday morning, the rain had yet to let up. The wind wasn't howling badly, as it does when Signal #3 is hoisted over the country, but it was just... continuous. And so very deceptive.
At this point I don't remember when we first started to panic, I think it was when we turned on the TV and saw how heavy the rain actually was. I live in one of the highest parts in my part of Greater Metro Manila, so I had no idea that fifteen minutes away, flood waters were already knee-deep.
One friend, V.L., who lives in a posh village downhill from my place, sent me a text message: "Wow, I never saw my car float on water before."
WAAAH!
I insisted that lushlush and loveisrationed stay put. Loveisrationed wanted to check on his mom, who was alone in their condo, but I said really, that isn't wise. So the only one to leave the house was my mom's day nurse, who wanted to go home. I was reluctant to let her go, because while she lives on high ground, she must travel through several low-lying areas which have ominous names such as as Floodway and Riverbank. But my mom's nurse is also a moody lady who'd be in a sulk for a week if I didn't give in, so... *shrug* I made it clear that major risk was involved.
This photo is a personal favorite of mine. As a book lover, I feel bad for this library!! ARGH! I believe it was taken during the earlier hours of the storm.
As the day went on, reports started to come in. Cars were being abandoned on main thoroughfares, and once abandoned they were being carried and crashed about like wee rubber ducks in a tub. Two important teaching hospitals located in different parts of the city -- UERM and UST -- were both underwater, rendering them useless for emergency cases. Stranded commuters resorted to walking, most of them clinging to makeshift ropes that guided them to safety.
Friends were leaving text messages, Twitters, and Face Book status updates regarding the water levels seeping into their houses. People living near the Pasig and Marikina rivers were evacuating to higher ground. Some, more stubborn, barricaded themselves in their houses, only to find themselves trapped inside. Many ended up in their attics or their rooftops -- children, men, the aged, even a few pregnant women.
Some enterprising person (male, I suppose) was trapped at the office and decided to compile all the photos he could find regarding the flash flood. I find the second photo rather touching, it's the one of the photo of the guy who let his dog use the floater, over here.
Since most Filipinos love their cellphones, everyone began to clamor for help and rescue. As we watched the news, the images were surreal. I had to check a map, and when I did, I was horrified to learn that my village was a virtual island. To the west, east, north and south of my barrio, everything was either waist-high or head-deep in water.
Another friend... I think it was accidentprawn-- who commented, "I forgot to board the ark." So true.
It was infuriating, that on that first day the most useful thing I could do was to drive my buddies to the local grocery store, where they made most of the meager selection of clothes and underwear and I stocked up on emergency food, batteries, and candles.
The second day was hardly any better. While loveisrationed decided to risk the streets to get home -- we girls stayed put. He did get home okay, but Lushlush lost contact with her family because their cell phone batteries wore out. Her legally blind grandmother, her mom, brother, and even a few stray neighbors were trapped in one bedroom on the 2nd floor of their house, and their food was running out.
I knew I couldn't risk myself or the car in driving lushlush to the area, because that would have been a foolhardy thing to do. The easiest thing (perhaps the only thing) we could do was to go back to the grocery. While lushlush bought supplies for her family, I bought some canned food, instant coffee, and biscuits in order to donate them. I was really happy to see the grocery was crowded with other people with the same idea. After that, we went to the nearby Red Cross office. Lushlush talked to a sympathetic volunteer who was manning communications, but we were informed that as of the moment, all their boats and people had their hands full with rescue operations elsewhere. That one volunteer was holding on to a list of names and addresses that was five pages long.
Here are more photos selected by the New York Times.
Another friend, F.L., made a daring escape with her family. With my 3-year old godson and her 70-year old mother in tow, they left their house when the bookshelves and the bed started to float. Walking all the way in chest-high, dirty flood water, they made it to dry land in time. Upon finding all hotels and motels fully booked due to other stranded folk, they ended up evacuating across the street, at our mutual friend A.A.'s house.
This was all more impressive when I remembered, belatedly, that F.L. is two months pregnant.
Really, I'm so glad they got out alive. Later on, we found out their entire bungalow was covered by the rushing current. They live in the area called Greenpark which was one of the last to be hit badly, and therefore one of the last places to get any sort of attention.
The rains just hit so hard, and so fast, that everyone was in a daze -- including those who should know better. *cough the government cough cough*
By evening, Lushlush got tired of waiting and watching the news and just worrying. She left no stone unturned -- all called all the rescue hotlines she could find, aside from the local news channel, everyone. But she got the same response everywhere: all the boats were out, all the rescue teams were working on it, the military was already deployed... there was just too much damage everywhere, all at once.
:(
I mean, think of it this way: Hurricane Katrina had stronger winds, but Ondoy has more rain. It dumped more than Manila's average monthly worth of rainfall in less than six hours. The national weather bureau calculated this is the worst flooding for the capital in 40 years.
More :(
Today things have gone *slightly* back to normal. While typhoon Ondoy already left the country and is now bothering Taiwan, it's still been drizzling occasionally. Schools are closed and most offices too. Upon receiving the news that it was possible to drive through the main road leading to lushlush's village, I took her as far as possible. We both got a good look at the river and some of the wreckage. It's interesting to note that it got worse, the farther away I drove. Near my house and the local Red Cross office, for instance, was one collapsed wall. But beyond that... ugh.
You know what's worse about it not raining heavily anymore? Reading about the death toll. The figures just keep going up. It's depressing.
So this is the way to bring Manila to its knees. What could not be accomplished by a 20-year dictatorship, military coup d'e tats or even the eruption of Mount Pinatubo was done by one strangely-named typhoon.
Sigh.
I know I'm okay. Hell, I'm more than okay! The problem is, actually, that I feel guilty to be so damn lucky. I should light a candle in honor of my grandfather, who decided to settle in this particular village back in the '60s -- anywhere else, it might have been me dragging a sickly senior citizen through floodwaters or trapped on a rooftop.
Anyway, in case you're still interested, here's the latest breaking news I could find from a reliable local source. It has video, but you might not understand most of it if you don't know Filipino. Basically, it starts with an areal view of the worst-hit parts of the city. This is the nation's capital, folks. There's a short interview with a guy who walked two hours to safety and lost contact with his family. The last part features a female doctor climbing to the top of the roof of her car right before it is overcome by the flood.
It's painful for me to say it, but really, I might as well. If you ever thought of sending me a gift because you like me, or my fanfiction, please do so now. I really don't need for anything personally, but so many other people here are in dire straits. So please consider sending help and love and good vibes by donating to the national chapter of Red Cross, which is probably the only local organization I'd trust with my money. :) These guys do honorable work. No amount is too small -- even $10 or $20 USD can buy food for a family of four or some much-needed medicine. I know things are bad all around the world now, with the recession, but things are really bad over here right now.
Anyway, here are the details on the Red Cross Website in case you're interested.
Google was very helpful in putting up this page for my country. :D Scroll down past the emergency numbers and there's a long list of ways to help.
Thanks for reading this. I'll try not to be so emo in my next post. Yes, it's a cliche... but I hope the sun will be out tomorrow.
Yeah, I know I've been offline for the past two weeks due to laptop woes, but immediately after I get my laptop back -- to the day, to be exact! -- something else hits my city. Tropical depression ONDOY.
International name: Ketsana. Yes, I must regret to announce, it came from Japan. And like many things that come from Japan, it was big, fast, terrifying. And deadly.
Here's what happened to me in the last couple of days.
As most disasters go, it started innocuously enough. On Friday afternoon, my friends lushlush and loveisrationed were already hanging out watching a Korean art house film at the nearest mall while I was baking my butt off. Surprisingly, though, I finished early, so I had time to rush off to pick up my laptop from the computer shop *yey for Apple Care Plan, I got a new Logic board, keyboard and battery without extra charges!* and to meet my buddies.
We had dinner, then coffee and dessert afterwards. From the windows of the cafe, we watched it rain. And rain. And rain. It seemed to have been raining all day, which is always a bad sign in Manila, especially on a Friday night when everybody is a rush to go home (or party.) Since there was a good chance they would have to wait 30 minutes or more for a cab or a bus, I suggested they crash at my house. Nothing unusual there, really.
I am SO GLAD I didn't suggest driving them home.
When we all woke up on Saturday morning, the rain had yet to let up. The wind wasn't howling badly, as it does when Signal #3 is hoisted over the country, but it was just... continuous. And so very deceptive.
At this point I don't remember when we first started to panic, I think it was when we turned on the TV and saw how heavy the rain actually was. I live in one of the highest parts in my part of Greater Metro Manila, so I had no idea that fifteen minutes away, flood waters were already knee-deep.
One friend, V.L., who lives in a posh village downhill from my place, sent me a text message: "Wow, I never saw my car float on water before."
WAAAH!
I insisted that lushlush and loveisrationed stay put. Loveisrationed wanted to check on his mom, who was alone in their condo, but I said really, that isn't wise. So the only one to leave the house was my mom's day nurse, who wanted to go home. I was reluctant to let her go, because while she lives on high ground, she must travel through several low-lying areas which have ominous names such as as Floodway and Riverbank. But my mom's nurse is also a moody lady who'd be in a sulk for a week if I didn't give in, so... *shrug* I made it clear that major risk was involved.
This photo is a personal favorite of mine. As a book lover, I feel bad for this library!! ARGH! I believe it was taken during the earlier hours of the storm.
As the day went on, reports started to come in. Cars were being abandoned on main thoroughfares, and once abandoned they were being carried and crashed about like wee rubber ducks in a tub. Two important teaching hospitals located in different parts of the city -- UERM and UST -- were both underwater, rendering them useless for emergency cases. Stranded commuters resorted to walking, most of them clinging to makeshift ropes that guided them to safety.
Friends were leaving text messages, Twitters, and Face Book status updates regarding the water levels seeping into their houses. People living near the Pasig and Marikina rivers were evacuating to higher ground. Some, more stubborn, barricaded themselves in their houses, only to find themselves trapped inside. Many ended up in their attics or their rooftops -- children, men, the aged, even a few pregnant women.
Some enterprising person (male, I suppose) was trapped at the office and decided to compile all the photos he could find regarding the flash flood. I find the second photo rather touching, it's the one of the photo of the guy who let his dog use the floater, over here.
Since most Filipinos love their cellphones, everyone began to clamor for help and rescue. As we watched the news, the images were surreal. I had to check a map, and when I did, I was horrified to learn that my village was a virtual island. To the west, east, north and south of my barrio, everything was either waist-high or head-deep in water.
Another friend... I think it was accidentprawn-- who commented, "I forgot to board the ark." So true.
It was infuriating, that on that first day the most useful thing I could do was to drive my buddies to the local grocery store, where they made most of the meager selection of clothes and underwear and I stocked up on emergency food, batteries, and candles.
The second day was hardly any better. While loveisrationed decided to risk the streets to get home -- we girls stayed put. He did get home okay, but Lushlush lost contact with her family because their cell phone batteries wore out. Her legally blind grandmother, her mom, brother, and even a few stray neighbors were trapped in one bedroom on the 2nd floor of their house, and their food was running out.
I knew I couldn't risk myself or the car in driving lushlush to the area, because that would have been a foolhardy thing to do. The easiest thing (perhaps the only thing) we could do was to go back to the grocery. While lushlush bought supplies for her family, I bought some canned food, instant coffee, and biscuits in order to donate them. I was really happy to see the grocery was crowded with other people with the same idea. After that, we went to the nearby Red Cross office. Lushlush talked to a sympathetic volunteer who was manning communications, but we were informed that as of the moment, all their boats and people had their hands full with rescue operations elsewhere. That one volunteer was holding on to a list of names and addresses that was five pages long.
Here are more photos selected by the New York Times.
Another friend, F.L., made a daring escape with her family. With my 3-year old godson and her 70-year old mother in tow, they left their house when the bookshelves and the bed started to float. Walking all the way in chest-high, dirty flood water, they made it to dry land in time. Upon finding all hotels and motels fully booked due to other stranded folk, they ended up evacuating across the street, at our mutual friend A.A.'s house.
This was all more impressive when I remembered, belatedly, that F.L. is two months pregnant.
Really, I'm so glad they got out alive. Later on, we found out their entire bungalow was covered by the rushing current. They live in the area called Greenpark which was one of the last to be hit badly, and therefore one of the last places to get any sort of attention.
The rains just hit so hard, and so fast, that everyone was in a daze -- including those who should know better. *cough the government cough cough*
By evening, Lushlush got tired of waiting and watching the news and just worrying. She left no stone unturned -- all called all the rescue hotlines she could find, aside from the local news channel, everyone. But she got the same response everywhere: all the boats were out, all the rescue teams were working on it, the military was already deployed... there was just too much damage everywhere, all at once.
:(
I mean, think of it this way: Hurricane Katrina had stronger winds, but Ondoy has more rain. It dumped more than Manila's average monthly worth of rainfall in less than six hours. The national weather bureau calculated this is the worst flooding for the capital in 40 years.
More :(
Today things have gone *slightly* back to normal. While typhoon Ondoy already left the country and is now bothering Taiwan, it's still been drizzling occasionally. Schools are closed and most offices too. Upon receiving the news that it was possible to drive through the main road leading to lushlush's village, I took her as far as possible. We both got a good look at the river and some of the wreckage. It's interesting to note that it got worse, the farther away I drove. Near my house and the local Red Cross office, for instance, was one collapsed wall. But beyond that... ugh.
You know what's worse about it not raining heavily anymore? Reading about the death toll. The figures just keep going up. It's depressing.
So this is the way to bring Manila to its knees. What could not be accomplished by a 20-year dictatorship, military coup d'e tats or even the eruption of Mount Pinatubo was done by one strangely-named typhoon.
Sigh.
I know I'm okay. Hell, I'm more than okay! The problem is, actually, that I feel guilty to be so damn lucky. I should light a candle in honor of my grandfather, who decided to settle in this particular village back in the '60s -- anywhere else, it might have been me dragging a sickly senior citizen through floodwaters or trapped on a rooftop.
Anyway, in case you're still interested, here's the latest breaking news I could find from a reliable local source. It has video, but you might not understand most of it if you don't know Filipino. Basically, it starts with an areal view of the worst-hit parts of the city. This is the nation's capital, folks. There's a short interview with a guy who walked two hours to safety and lost contact with his family. The last part features a female doctor climbing to the top of the roof of her car right before it is overcome by the flood.
It's painful for me to say it, but really, I might as well. If you ever thought of sending me a gift because you like me, or my fanfiction, please do so now. I really don't need for anything personally, but so many other people here are in dire straits. So please consider sending help and love and good vibes by donating to the national chapter of Red Cross, which is probably the only local organization I'd trust with my money. :) These guys do honorable work. No amount is too small -- even $10 or $20 USD can buy food for a family of four or some much-needed medicine. I know things are bad all around the world now, with the recession, but things are really bad over here right now.
Anyway, here are the details on the Red Cross Website in case you're interested.
Google was very helpful in putting up this page for my country. :D Scroll down past the emergency numbers and there's a long list of ways to help.
Thanks for reading this. I'll try not to be so emo in my next post. Yes, it's a cliche... but I hope the sun will be out tomorrow.