The Short Life of a Disaster

Just before 5am I wake to the thump, thump sound of helicopter blades and the roar of C130 engines. Day after day the same routine.

We live about two kilometres from the Cebu airport on Mactan Island and the sound easily carries.

So I don't forget. About a hundred kilometres to the north of us there are people living in dire circumstances. I have heard that there are now enough supplies but the distribution is the problem. I have a feeling of inevitability as I realise that these people, like others all over the world have been neglected by the one institution that they believed would look after them ... the government.

But once again a government has failed.

Any belief that their democracy would be their salvation has again been dashed. So I wonder, what will it take for abused populations to eventually rise up in their own "Arab spring"?

I have great respect for the people who have very little, but who care enough about the even less fortunate. Day after day they make sacrifices. My mind wanders back to my days of selling university rag magazines in the poor areas of Durban where an obviously poor person would hesitantly approach. Not having enough money to buy a magazine but still wanting to make a donation ... I gave him a magazine anyway.

Quite frankly most democratic societies are stuffed up. Borrowed to the hilt. Fat cat politicians sacrificing the future to make themselves look good. Excuses, excuses and blame. While all around there are signs of failure ... poverty, homelessness, degeneration of values (and not only currencies), irrational controls, more and more laws.

Western populations in a feeding frenzy. With little consideration for the future but driven by an insatiable drive to consume. These warped values being adopted by the "middle class" of all developing nations

And for the bulk of the world population more and more despair.

The politicians around the world keep pushing a failed democracy agenda.

My message today to those who are fortunate enough to be reading this blog. Remember how priviledged you are. There are many today who had their lives ripped way from them. Tonight, and for many more nights to come, they will go to sleep hungry and homeless ... everything they worked for destroyed.

Together with their trust?

Living Through Super Typhoon Yolanda.

 9:00am. We are waiting. The power wentout about an hour ago ... so no internet and also no internet on my phone. The cities around us have been shut down so this “brown out” could last all day.

It has been raining off and on since last night but so far nothing very heavy.

The mess left by Typhoon Yolanda - 100 kms from the epicentre!

If the typhoon follows the path that it was expected to it will pass the closest to us (less than 100kms away) in about 4 or 5 hours time.  Just to understand the size of Yolanda – the has a diameter of about 600 kms.

The wind has picked up noticeably and the front screen door has slammed a few times as stronger gusts pump through. The lounge floor is damp as the wind drives the rain across the carport and through the gauze screen.

I recall that yesterday I noticed that in a number of places branches were being cut off trees. Now I realize why.

Outside a maid is following her daily routine and sweeping the leaves on the road. It seems pointless as the wind freshens and more leaves fall and debris is blown around.

The conditions seem ominous – grey, heavy skies, gusting winds and the never ending sound of the rain. One is expectant. This is not like the massive earthquake we experienced a few weeks ago.

Although the earthquake was violent – it was sudden and occurred on a sunny morning on a public holiday. This is relentless and will last for many hours. 

My thoughts go out to all the people who are living in wooden shacks. Many with no windows and leaking roofs, having to wait in anticipation … and hope that they wont be too badly affected.

However the path of the eye as it moves from west to east through the Philippines will pass through a number of populated areas. With winds of up to 300kph there has to be some serious damage.

11:00am. The sky is darker. The sound of the rain is relentless and clatters noisily on the plastic roof. The wind has freshened significantly and the front door is closed. Most of the windows have been closed but at times you hear them banging in their frames as the gusts get stronger.

This tree was at least 10m tall - snapped off at the roots. One of 3 in our sub-division

I am certainly glad that I’m indoors and not out there.

There is evidence of the wind strength as you look up the road and see the litter of small branches that have been ripped down. On the upstairs verandah the lounger is upside down.

A few stairs have large puddles of water which are now overflowing downstairs. It’s certainly surprising how much rain can be blown through a sliding door gap of only a centimeter or two.

1:00pm. The worst is obviously over. The rain is spitting and the wind is brisk with quite strong gusts.  After a short walk outside the damage is evident. Large branches have been ripped from trees.

A number of large trees completely uprooted. A few people are out sawing away at the fallen trees that are blocking the roads. Not a chain saw in sight.

Littered around one tree are a number of large coconut sized nuts. Definitely not something to land on ones head! A loose piece of corrugated iron flaps noisily in the wind.

If this is the damage in our subdivision I’m sure that outside there must be some significant devastation.

Thanks to a gas cooker we can boil water for tea or coffee during power outages. But right now (quite selfishly) all we would like is for the power to be turned on.