The Storm after the Storm
Typhoon Ulysses
Ulysses made its first landfall in the Philippines near midnight on November 11 in the Quezon province as a Category 2-equivalent typhoon. The typhoon brought heavy rains in Central Luzon, and the nearby provinces, including Metro Manila, the national capital. Heavy rains caused by the typhoon overflowed rivers, causing severe flooding in Marikina. Days after the typhoon had passed the Philippines, rescue operations in the Cagayan Valley were still ongoing due to the unexpected extent of the flooding. As of December 2, the Philippines’ National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council had stated that the typhoon had 92 casualties and around P19.3 billion in damages.
After hearing about the storm through the news, my family started preparing for it. Our old house back in 2006 was hit bad by typhoon Milenyo and ever since then we were always cautious about typhoons no matter how weak it was. Every time signal number 1 would be announced during any typhoon, we would have flashlights, lamps, candles, power banks, and water stored in big tubs in case it shut off.
So yes, the typhoon finally struck but from what I was experiencing that time. it didn't seem like much to me. In my area, there were barely any rains but the strong winds kept coming and banging our windows and trees. I sat there in the safety of my own room, with friends on call wondering when our power would finally disappear. One by one people started disconnecting from the call until my power was cut off as well. From there I turned on the LTE I had been saving for that night and carried on like nothing happened, despite the fact that I was in complete darkness.
Raining Thoughts
As I laid there in my bed, with nothing but the sounds of heavy wind and the light from my phone I was put into deep thought. How privileged was I to be in my room, still surfing the internet on my phone despite the power being out. How lucky was I to still be in communication with my friends and family. How safe I was in that room. I felt quite ashamed to be thinking those because of the thought of other people in this country who weren’t in the same position as I was. I decided to sleep it off and wait for the news the next morning.
The Storm arrives
PAGASA: Magat dam administrator warned of strong rains before Typhoon Ulysses
After hearing this story on the Magat dam, my family and I were quite furious with the administration. The flooding of the Magat damn could have been avoided or at least controlled if they had just listened to PAGASA’s announcement on the imminent flood warning, even before typhoon Ulysses. According to more research on the dam, it has not been upgraded in decades and was not designed for flood control. The dam was opened during the storm because it would not be able to withstand the amount of rain pouring and subsequently, Cagayan and Isabella were flooded. Whether the cause of the floods were due to the poor maintenance of the dam or not, the fact remains that the problem of the dam was overlooked by incompetent officials.
The aftermath of the storm left many places in a state of disaster. My family and I all decided to donate to an organization owned by our family friends in an effort to help the people greatly affected by the storm. During this time, I would say that I was more active and informed during any other disastrous typhoon. I found that using the principle of Dimostrazione opened my mind to a lot of things in our country. I am more aware of my situation and the situation of others now that I am in college with a matured mindset. I wanted to finally be able to understand the problems and the current state of our country because I felt as if I was so ignorant towards everything in general. I would always try to converse with my friends who were more aware and knowledgeable about politics or businesses but could never really go that far because of my ignorant mindset.
ADMU Student Strike
After this was posted online I didn’t know what to think at first. I really admire the courage and the effort of those striking and how they are fighting for equality but I feel like these have been long-standing issues that the government has continually chosen to ignore. I find it very sad and frustrating that these issues are only being amplified because of the pandemic, and more recently the series of typhoons but I find it hard to see how a strike done by students from a privately funded institution will make the government do anything. We students are not holding anything from them that would make them want to compromise and in terms of school work, our strike will not be felt because everything is online so the impact of a strike or walk out will not be as affective now than it would have been if we had been in physical class. When workers strike and transportation strikes, we feel their actions. e.g when classes are suspended, but that is because their absence will be felt and their actions will be heard by everyone. I think that the goal of this strike is for a very good cause that could help our country progress but as optimistic as I want to be, I do not think the government will even bat an eye. I feel that this is also an example of Dimostrazione in terms of realizing what must be done and what we can do in the future. I feel like shaming our generation and calling us “woke” hinders our development for we are the future of this country and we will make a change no matter what.
