Residents of Barangay Industrial Valley Complex, Marikina who live near the river line up for relief goods on July 26, 2024. Benise Balaoing, ABS-CBN News

Residents of Barangay Industrial Valley Complex, Marikina

Benise Balaoing

ABS-CBN News

<div><span style="background-color:transparent"> </span></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1722578217532baha gutter deep.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Gutter-deep floods outside the author&#x27;s home in Marikina City on July 24, 2024.</span></span></span></div><p>MANILA – When I woke up at 6 a.m., the water level of the Marikina River was already 16 meters– that means Alarm Level 1, which means residents should prepare to evacuate.</p><p>Not even an hour later, the water was already at 17 meters—the second alarm–which means people should leave for designated evacuation centers.</p><p>Third alarm is issued when the water rises to 18 meters–this means forced evacuation. But we didn’t wait for that.</p><p>I packed my stuff right away, grabbed my laptop, and tried to book a hotel.</p><p>This has been our family’s routine since 2022. </p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7WjNh6qNL-o?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><div><br/></div><p>My lola is a senior citizen and my mom is a person with disability—which means we didn’t want to risk going to public evacuation centers where COVID-19 health protocols might not be followed due to overcrowding.</p><p>On top of that, neither of them can’t climb stairs anymore—and public schools are multi-storey buildings.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1722578641671bag evacuate.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Some of what we brought to the hotel: clothes, bread, rechargeable fans, rechargeable light, medicines, and a laptop (to work remotely, at an adjusted shift)</span></span></span></div><p>Because we have been doing this so often, I was already a member of the loyalty program of the hotel chain. Using their app, I can get a room in 2-3 minutes, and with a 15 percent discount at that. </p><p>Usually, it was easy to book a vehicle. But this time it took us 3 hours to get a car. It was almost 10 a.m when a car was finally available. The driver was in Nangka—about two barangays away from us in Malanday. On a normal day, the vehicle would have reached us in 10 minutes tops. But because of the flood, it took him more than an hour to reach us. </p><p>Traffic along smaller streets between Nangka and Malanday was no longer moving, not because of the flood but because of so many other vehicles and people trying to evacuate.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>WHY EVACUATE?</strong></div><p>“To evacuate is just so reactive,” said survival expert Dr. Ted Esguerra.</p><p>Still, should Filipinos need to evacuate, they will need a go-bag that will hold all their needs.</p><p>Esguerra said a good go-bag must contain the following:</p><div><br/></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17225912701481000007280.png" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/></div><div><br/></div><p>Esguerra stressed it is important for Filipinos to track the typhoons or storms that may be headed their way. That way, they can plan an evacuation where they would end up staying with their relatives.</p><p>“Kasi doon sa designated na evacuation area, hindi siya ideal. For example, (may) iilan sa Marikina na evacuation area pero binabaha din,” he noted.</p><p>(Some designated evacuation centers aren&#x27;t ideal. For example, some evacuation centers in Marikina are also prone to flooding.) </p><p>Some evacuation centers also lack proper sanitation, and don&#x27;t follow protocols about how many families are supposed to be there per square meter.</p><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/APru4tlCelY?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><p>“So, naalis ka dito sa baha, pero, nagkaroon ka naman ng sakit, no? Nagka-diarrhea. Worst case scenario, na-dengue ka pa kasi naging breeding ground yung area mo ngayon,” he explained.</p><p>(So you escaped the flood, but you got sick with diarrhea. Or worst-case scenario, you got dengue because the area has become a breeding ground for the disease.)</p><p>But he stressed that it’s better for Filipinos to evacuate rather than put their and rescuers’ lives in danger.</p><p>“Para hindi din mahirap sa amin na sa kasagsagan ng baha, sumusuong kami, ‘di buwis-buhay din kami dahil hindi kayo nag-evacuate. So, pinakamaganda, evacuate ka. Maunahan mo na.”</p><p>(This is make it easier for us rescuers, so we aren&#x27;t risking our lives because you didn&#x27;t evacuate. So the best move is to evacuate. Get ahead of the flood.)</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RESILIENCE AGAIN AND AGAIN </strong></div><p>The Philippines is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world. This year alone, 13 to 18 cyclones are expected to hit, according to state weather bureau PAGASA.</p><p>We first fell victim to flooding when typhoon Ondoy struck in 2009. My family was stuck on the second floor of our home, only the last 2 steps of our staircase visible above the floodwaters. When classes “resumed” two weeks later in school, they didn’t really resume.</p><p>One week was allotted to cleaning all the classrooms, and the week after, subject teachers entered the classrooms to give us advice and soothing words as we exchanged stories of survival.</p><p>“Once in ten years lang &#x27;yan,” my class adviser said. I was hoping it was a euphemism for “This is pretty much never gonna happen again.” Or, that when it happens, I’ll be ready.</p><p>I hated that she was right.</p><p>I also hated that Ulysses happened in 2021. It was almost Ondoy part 2 – my family, stuck again on the second floor of our home, though the water levels were lower this time—they were only up to my dad’s chest.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1722579843942ulysses labas.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Floodwaters were chest deep outside the author&#x27;s home when typhoon Ulysses struck in November 2021. </span></span></span></div><p>But I hate the feeling of being cramped in a small place with no electricity, faced with uncertainty, and being literally and figuratively unsure of the ground you&#x27;re stepping on. I hate the feeling of death-not-death, of things, of normalcy being taken away from you suddenly. I hate how my mother has to sleep with the lights on during the rainy season because she has to be able to save us.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:950px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1722580079682ulysses 2.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner">The aftermath of typhoon Ulysses in the author&#x27;s home in 2021.</span></span></span></div><p>To be fair to the Marikina local government, things have indeed been getting better. The Carina-enhanced habagat dumped more water than Ondoy did in 2009—yet the water level in Marikina River peaked only at 20.7 meters, against the 23 meters it reached during Ondoy.</p><p>Dave David, head of our city&#x27;s disaster risk reduction and management office, said the city is 90 percent done with cleanup in 9 affected barangays, and they are trying to finish in time for the school opening on August 5.</p><div><ivs-player data-ivs-key="e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603" data-ivs-spid="3001339" data-ivs-vid="3064718"></ivs-player></div><script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/loader.js"></script><p>But continuously being a victim of calamities creates a feeling of panic, of fear I can’t explain. It’s a feeling of being afraid but not being able to scream because you have to hold it together. You have to be calm in the face of an emergency because if you aren’t, the more things will go south as you fight for your life. Or your sanity.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ACRmdGSg9yw?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>INFRASTRUCTURE FOR RESILIENCE</strong></div><p>I asked Esguerra if he thinks Filipinos are getting smarter when it comes to responding to impending calamities.</p><p>He lauded the government’s move to put up better alarms and monitoring systems. Even the military has become adept at disaster response, he said.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1722580844197IVC.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">A road in Barangay Industrial Valley Complex--which is located right on the banks of the Marikina River--is still caked with mud two days after the onslaught of typhoon Carina. Photo taken on July 26, 2024.</span></span></span></div><p>“Mga kasundaluhan natin, sunod-sunod ang kanilang pag-training, hindi lang sila sundalo, kundi ni-require pa sila na mag-train sa search and rescue. Gulat nga ako, pati nga ang Scout Ranger, ito yung mga warrior natin, aba nag-search and rescue? Even our Marines, nagtayo ng third disaster response day.”</p><p>(Our soldiers have continuous training, also in search and rescue. I was surprised to find out that even our warriors, our Scout Rangers, did training in search and rescue. Even our Marines hosted a disaster response day.</p><p>There are also more disaster-response volunteers who have gone through standardized training, he said. </p><p>But he stressed that the Philippines has yet to foster a culture of safety among its people.</p><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/P0YTRfW-l-g?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><div><br/></div><p>This is because people need to put food on the table first. They can’t be bothered to make go-bags because it is an extra expense. We also don’t relocate to homes on higher grounds because we need the money to send our children to school. </p><p>He also noted that a lack of infrastructure that ensures Filipinos’ safety in a time of tragedy.</p><p>“Bigyan kita ng isang example. Sa Taiwan, they readied themselves sa war. Giyera. And when I was there to study war, disaster, meron silang 116—declared lang yun—116 air raid shelters. And those 116 air raid shelters can house the whole Taiwanese.”</p><p>In contrast, he lamented how he had a hard time evacuating Batangas residents when the Taal Volcano erupted in 2020--because the evacuation centers they were supposed to move into were also covered by ashfall.</p><p>It’s hard to tell people to be resilient when there is no infrastructure to support resilience, he said.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1722581870328relief goods.jpeg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Barangay Industrial Valley Complex, Marikina residents line up for relief goods on July 26, 2024. Benise Balaoing, ABS-CBN News</span></span></span></div><p>Esguerra also said that preparing for disasters must be drilled into young minds by including this in the school curriculum.</p><p>Finally, he noted that Philippine laws must be stronger when it comes to making sure private citizens are preemptively protecting themselves against disasters. </p><p>If people wait until the floodwaters are already high before they evacuate, they must be jailed, he said. </p><p>“Dito sa Pilipinas, tumawid ka sa baha, nasa leeg, kumakaway pa sa camera,” he said.</p><p> (Here in the Philippines, some people wade through neck-deep floodwaters and still wave at the camera.)</p>

<p>My family and I have been evacuating from typhoons for years. Here's how we do it--and how experts think we can all do better. </p>

My family and I have been evacuating from typhoons for years. Here's how we do it--and how experts think we can all do better.

How our family prepares for floods in Marikina | ABS-CBN

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How our family prepares for floods in Marikina

How our family prepares for floods in Marikina

Benise Balaoing,

ABS-CBN News

Published Aug 02, 2024 11:25 AM PHT

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Updated Aug 02, 2024 06:44 PM PHT

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