SUPERTYPHOON JUAN TO JUAN DELA CRUZ: WATCH AND LEARN

According to the National Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC), the supertyphoon Juan (international code name: Megi) has left at least 12 casualties, and caused damage initially around Php 1.5 billion to infrastructure, power systems and roads, and agriculture.

Juan was the strongest typhoon so far to hit the country this year. With average gusts of 260 kph, it brought many areas in northern Luzon to massive floods, and some rock and landslides, destroyed vast tract of agricultural lands, caused seas to rise and to produce storm surge in some coastal areas facing the Pacific Ocean and South China Sea.

Faustina Dy, governor of Isabela, described the waves as big as houses that swamped nearby towns of her province.

The biggest damage was on agriculture, initially estimated at more than Php 1.55 billion, the Department of Agriculture said.

Around 100,000 hectares of rice and corn crops had been destroyed in Isabela alone, losing an estimated 385,000 tons of rice and 46,400 tons of corn. This, in effect, may have to force the country, the world's largest rice importer, to import more on rice-exporting countries like Vietnam and Thailand. Central Luzon has provided mainly the rice demands in the country. What about now? The region is barely hit by the typhoon.  

On one hand, many roads became unpassable to vehicles during the onslaught of the supertyphoon. Even Baguio City's major route in going to and from the city, had also been closed for clearing operations. Also, some bridges collapsed taken from rivers which overflowed.

Worse, many families ended up homeless and staying fretfully in some congested evacuation centers. Relief goods, in some areas tend to be difficult minding that these places became isolated, where it took only a helicopter to hand in this relief goods to the evacuees. Accordingly, the US Embassy in Manila called on that the US government has released $100,000 in disaster relief assistance to the typhoon victims. Also, various non-governmental organizations and other institutions also voluntarily chipped in relief goods for the victims.

Meanwhile, several areas in northern and central Luzon may have to sacrifice longer power outages because of the damage to major transmission lines.

Cynthia Alabanza, spokesperson of National Grid Corporation of the Philippines, said that the damage was worse than expected, including most crucial lines in north Luzon.

Despite such statistics, President Aquino commended Pagasa, DND, DOST, DSWD and the NDRRMC for delivering thorough preparations and actions which resulted to low casualty.

This adds up another to why the Philippines is considered as the most vulnerable by disasters despite its risk reduction management.

Typhoons just come after another. And, then came Ondoy, Pepeng, Juan, among others. Filipinos have to learn that saving one's and others' lives during disasters, egging on climate change awareness, and caring for Mother Nature, are so much important more than ever before.

To Filipinos, there's simply no such thing as destruction beyond recovery.

Photo Credit:  http://www.google.com.ph/