WE should prepare for strong typhoons and heavy rains that come much later in the year, well after the rainy season is over, as this has become the new normal in the country.
Tropical Depression Agaton just lashed the Philippines with torrential rain, indeed, pouring on some of the same provinces that were devastated by Typhoons Vinta and Urduja (known globally as Tembin and Kai-tak, respectively), collectively killing more than 200 people, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.
If you look at the other strong typhoons that hit the country the past few years, they also came well after the traditional rainy season; for example, Typhoons Sendong and Pablo hit during December, Yolanda during November and Lando during October.
We would be blind not to see more than a coincidence but a pattern here. These “late coming” typhoons and rains are no longer anomalies. Scientists have been telling us for years to prepare for warmer temperatures, wetter conditions, extreme and erratic weather events linked to a changing climate.
These freakish deluges should be a wake-up call to the government, especially since we have many coastal and low-lying areas that are vulnerable to flooding. The devastation could be minimized if both local and national governments are better prepared.
To be fair, the government seems to have learned from follies of the past. After Typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng, for instance, it made disaster preparedness, risk assessment and analysis a focus of national policy, institutionalized these functions even through a law—Republic Act 10121, or the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010.
Weather forecasting has also been vastly improved.
We could benefit more though from better land-use planning, so that our people do not put their homes and livelihoods in harm’s way. More money should be allocated for the relocation of those most vulnerable to less threatened areas.
We also need to spread a culture of preparedness, especially to the majority of poor Filipinos who are too busy about their daily survival to worry about typhoons that are just right around the corner.
If we can allocate a sizeable portion of our national budget to helping our people prepare for escalating weather events, the money spent would turn out to be a good investment in poverty reduction, because storms and other natural disasters always swell the ranks of the poor.
We saw what a high level of preparedness and planning can do to minimize risks and prevent casualties. We can turn to the experience of Albay province whose disaster reduction and zero casualty program counts among the best in the world.
Albay learned its lessons after being devastated by Typhoon Reming in 2006 and aggressively invested in disaster reduction. It was cited by the United Nations as among the first local governments that committed to a 10-point checklist to step up investment in urban planning; infrastructure and building safety; reinforcing drainage systems to reduce flooding; and installing early warning systems.
Albay proves that with good planning and the right programs and social investments, disaster does not necessarily lead to devastation. The province should not be a local exception. It should serve as the national model.
Image credits: Jimbo Albano