A DECADE and two Presidents after it happened, super typhoon “Yolanda” (international name: Haiyan) is still very much etched in our social consciousness – or shall we say, conscience – because this weather phenomenon was one of the strongest tropical cyclones in history, with winds exceeding 300 KPH and a 5-meter storm surge, hitting Tacloban City and the rest of Leyte and Samar provinces.
Nov. 8, 2013 will forever be remembered by the residents of Tacloban for they are all survivors of the country’s worst-ever natural disaster. More than 8,000 people lost their lives and over 14 million inhabitants in Region 8 suffered by way of direct physical injuries and mental anguish, loss of livelihood and businesses, loss of homes, vehicles, personal belongings, and tools or implements by which to plant crops or go fishing, etc.
Official reports after the disaster said 1.1 million houses were destroyed by Yolanda, along with 33 million coconut trees in a region in which the nut is a principal crop, and pushed some 2.3 million people deeper into poverty.
‘The super typhoon taught the government and the people that killer forces of nature are very much with us in this age of climate change and there’s no escaping from this situation.’
Economists pointed out that the long-term risks of Yolanda include an increase in unemployment and underemployment (many businesses were decimated, suffered huge losses because of looting and brownouts that followed the tragedy), increased poverty levels, and deterioration of human capital indicators.
Presidents Noynoy Aquino and Rodrigo Duterte did their best to rebuild the government infrastructure leveled by the typhoon, even as foreign donors swamped the region with assistance, both relief goods and cash. The Department of Public Works and Highways also can be cited for making the city’s recovery effort a little bit easier.
There were looting and violent incidents after the disaster, but there were also gems of compassion, sense of duty, sympathy and heroism, as President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. cited in his speech at the typhoon’s 10th anniversary in Tacloban last Wednesday.
Marcos recognized the selfless service of many individuals and government officials, including Sen. Francis Tolentino who was then chairman of the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) but came all the way to Eastern Visayas with his team of engineers and first responders to lead the rescue and relief operations.
“Si Senator Francis Tolentino, MMDA siya, napakalayo po, but the first heavy equipment that arrived in Tacloban was the MMDA heavy equipment. Nauna pa sila sa lahat ng government agencies,” Marcos said.
The presidential statement was echoed by House Speaker Martin Romualdez, the representative of Tacloban, saying that Senator Tolentino “literally risked his life and almost lost his life where he spent the initial days during which death and despair were among us.”
It was not only Tolentino, but also all the mayors of Metro Manila led by former President and Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada, who initiated a significant fund-raising drive in their cities to send assistance to the people of Leyte, going as far as every city “adopting” a town victimized by Yolanda.
The super typhoon taught the government and the people that killer forces of nature are very much with us in this age of climate change and there’s no escaping from this situation. We can only prepare and face the challenges nature has to give with courage and perseverance.