SO, HOW'S THE WEATHER NOW?
by Ping B. Peralta
"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."
- Native American proverb
The first week of August this year was really a bad one for most of the people living in the Luzon area in the Philippines. For more than a week, flooding in the country's capital Manila were felt by almost all of the residents rich or poor. Flooding brought about by the sustained monsoon rains have spread out as far as the Central Luzon, now considered the catch basin of the country.
As I was viewing reports from television, the water level has gone so high within the 6th day of continuous down pour. The country's weather bureau, in its forecast, did not even mentioned a tropical depression coming in or entering the country. It was the heavy torrential rains that greatly surprised everybody. As reports were being fed to the public regarding the damage brought about by the said deluge, people living in nearby rivers were forcibly evacuated by the government troops. they were brought to higher and safer grounds. Astrodomes, gymnasiums, sports facilities like covered basketball courts were made into instant evacuation centers jam-packed by evacuees within Metro Manila. Local government officials were then forced to release calamity funds to feed the swelling numbers of evacuees. Rescue operations cost also doubled. About 90% of Metro Manila
were submerged.
In one of the TV footages i saw, the underpass near Manila City Hall was not passable anymore. The flood water reached more than 14 feet. In some parts of Malabon, a rescue team trying to pluck out a family from a roof top were themselves an instant victim when their rubber boat got punctured and deflated caused by a sharp galvanized iron which they were not able to see due to the murky flood waters. The rain continued to pour down heavily, exposing the victims to extreme cold that late afternoon rain. The water then continued to raise its level.
People from different evacuation centers were asking for food supplies, clean drinking water and medicines for their sick family members. Different NGOs readily answered the call by providing ready-to-eat food, bottled water, and some medicines. The flooding reached its 10th day. It has claimed 30 souls already who mostly died by drowning. The usual victims were children and women. Tons of garbage mostly of plastic and styrofoam compounded the problem. The water ways were all clogged up. Improvised boats instantly appeared in the city streets. Lootings were everywhere!
Meanwhile about 550 kilometers away from Manila, I was assigned by our office to cover a training program on Container Gardening and Edible Landscaping, a project initiated by our institution Bicol University, and was held in Rizal Beach, Gubat, Sorsogon. Included in the training were topics on recycling, organic farming, vermi culture, and organic fertilizer production. The participants consisted of local municipal and barangay officials, extension workers, house holders, and students. As I was documenting the activities participated in by more than 60 people I noticed that everyone enjoyed very much the different garden tips provided by the resource persons. For a moment most of us have temporarily forgotten the tragic events in Manila.
In the late afternoon of August 8, while sitting fronting the beachline, I saw the sun about to set on the West. Immediately I grabbed my camera and took several shots of the scene. It was a very nice view then, but my mind was still transfixed to the people scampering for higher grounds, for safety while trying to beat the raising flood water in Marikina, Malabon, Pasig, or in Laguna. How can I be happy seeing such blaring red hot sun set here in Rizal Beach, Gubat, Sorsogon? It would be very unfair to be enjoying such moment while on other side of the world many are dying, scrambling to survive a flood. If I can only bring that sun to Metro Manila...
Now I know, climate change is a matter of scientific fact. Even if you are a fisherman from Kiribati losing your island due to the raising sea water, or a snow boarder who could not find snow anymore last January, climate change is making its presence known.
by Ping B. Peralta
"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."
- Native American proverb
The first week of August this year was really a bad one for most of the people living in the Luzon area in the Philippines. For more than a week, flooding in the country's capital Manila were felt by almost all of the residents rich or poor. Flooding brought about by the sustained monsoon rains have spread out as far as the Central Luzon, now considered the catch basin of the country.
As I was viewing reports from television, the water level has gone so high within the 6th day of continuous down pour. The country's weather bureau, in its forecast, did not even mentioned a tropical depression coming in or entering the country. It was the heavy torrential rains that greatly surprised everybody. As reports were being fed to the public regarding the damage brought about by the said deluge, people living in nearby rivers were forcibly evacuated by the government troops. they were brought to higher and safer grounds. Astrodomes, gymnasiums, sports facilities like covered basketball courts were made into instant evacuation centers jam-packed by evacuees within Metro Manila. Local government officials were then forced to release calamity funds to feed the swelling numbers of evacuees. Rescue operations cost also doubled. About 90% of Metro Manila
were submerged.
In one of the TV footages i saw, the underpass near Manila City Hall was not passable anymore. The flood water reached more than 14 feet. In some parts of Malabon, a rescue team trying to pluck out a family from a roof top were themselves an instant victim when their rubber boat got punctured and deflated caused by a sharp galvanized iron which they were not able to see due to the murky flood waters. The rain continued to pour down heavily, exposing the victims to extreme cold that late afternoon rain. The water then continued to raise its level.
People from different evacuation centers were asking for food supplies, clean drinking water and medicines for their sick family members. Different NGOs readily answered the call by providing ready-to-eat food, bottled water, and some medicines. The flooding reached its 10th day. It has claimed 30 souls already who mostly died by drowning. The usual victims were children and women. Tons of garbage mostly of plastic and styrofoam compounded the problem. The water ways were all clogged up. Improvised boats instantly appeared in the city streets. Lootings were everywhere!
Meanwhile about 550 kilometers away from Manila, I was assigned by our office to cover a training program on Container Gardening and Edible Landscaping, a project initiated by our institution Bicol University, and was held in Rizal Beach, Gubat, Sorsogon. Included in the training were topics on recycling, organic farming, vermi culture, and organic fertilizer production. The participants consisted of local municipal and barangay officials, extension workers, house holders, and students. As I was documenting the activities participated in by more than 60 people I noticed that everyone enjoyed very much the different garden tips provided by the resource persons. For a moment most of us have temporarily forgotten the tragic events in Manila.
In the late afternoon of August 8, while sitting fronting the beachline, I saw the sun about to set on the West. Immediately I grabbed my camera and took several shots of the scene. It was a very nice view then, but my mind was still transfixed to the people scampering for higher grounds, for safety while trying to beat the raising flood water in Marikina, Malabon, Pasig, or in Laguna. How can I be happy seeing such blaring red hot sun set here in Rizal Beach, Gubat, Sorsogon? It would be very unfair to be enjoying such moment while on other side of the world many are dying, scrambling to survive a flood. If I can only bring that sun to Metro Manila...
Now I know, climate change is a matter of scientific fact. Even if you are a fisherman from Kiribati losing your island due to the raising sea water, or a snow boarder who could not find snow anymore last January, climate change is making its presence known.
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