* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
By Mardy Halcon
She used to love playing in the rain, just like any other child. But now, the mere sound of raindrops makes her quiver.
Jarmiss fought a battle to survive on the night of December 16 as the flood caused by Typhoon Sendong (Washi) coursed its way through her village. The 13-year-old held on to the leaves of Nipa – a water palm that grows in abundance locally, to keep afloat and save herself from being swept away by floods.
“I just wanted to live. It was cold, I was very tired, but I held on,” she said recalling what was going on her mind as flood washed away people and houses in their village in Bayug Island, Iligan City in Northern Mindanao.
Jarmiss and her family are now in a local elementary school still reeling under the shock of floods that devastated swathes of towns and villages in the Philippines Mindanao Island on December 16 last year. The severe flooding caused by the tropical storm left over 1200 dead and affected nearly 118,000 families. Over 80,000 families evacuated following floods are still homeless.
“We were fast asleep when my father roused us at around 11 pm as the flood water had already entered our house. We rushed out of the house and swam to the river bank, but in just a few minutes the floodwater was already over our heads,” recalled Jarmiss. Jarmiss kept hold of the Nipa leaves that grow wild along the river banks. Other members of her family also managed clung on to the plants. They stayed there until the break of dawn.
Jarmiss’s mother, Missiona, tightly hugged her 6-year-old son during the five-hour ordeal. Missiona’s husband and other two children were all fighting to stay afloat. “I would shout at each member of the family to check that they were still holding on. I was making sure that no one fell asleep as they would have certainly drowned,” said Missiona.
But as huge logs started to arrive along with gushing waters, Jarmiss’s 12-year old sister Jonamar was hit and lost her grip. The family saw her being swallowed up by the Mandulog River as it made its way to Iligan Bay. Next Jarmiss’s 26-year old auntie Anabelle who was with them was hit by a log and also swept away.
Missiona and her family helplessly watched this tragedy unfold in front of their eyes. “We could not do anything. The floodwater had strong currents. We prayed hard for their safety.”
When the water receded in the early hours of December 17, the family saw the extent of damage –toppled houses, huge logs, uprooted trees and most painful of all - dead people.
Just when the Jarmiss’s family had given up hopes of Jonamar and Anabelle’s survival, they were informed that both had been rescued. They were treated for wounds in a nearby hospital and were reunited with the family at their temporary shelter in the local school.
“I thought I was already dead. I fell asleep because I was so tired. When I opened my eyes and saw all the debris and the water around me, I was thankful to be still alive,” said Anabelle. She along with Jonamar and four others was rescued in Iligan Bay by a passing boat the following afternoon.
Evacuees at the local elementary school, numbering to around 360 families or roughly 2 000 people, have now been moved out from the school gym where they had been staying since December 17. The move was triggered as the school reopened on January 3 after the festive break.
Families, such as that of the Jarmiss’s, remain inside the school compound though. The lack of a more permanent and secure settlement site has forced many families to stay within the school premises.
To ensure that people, especially women and children, will have some privacy, child rights organisation Plan International has distributed 40 tents to the families. Water kits have been distributed to make sure that each family could have access to clean drinking water. As rain continues and rainwater becomes stagnant there is a greater risk of diseases such as dengue caused by mosquitoes. It is for this reason that Plan has also given mosquito nets to the evacuated families.
“Water has been a problem because the water system has been damaged. But with water kits, we are no longer afraid of not having access to safe, drinking water,” Missiona said.
Overall, Plan is responding to the life-saving needs of families in the worst affected parts of Iligan, Cagayan de Oro and Negros Oriental. The organisation is aiming to reach nearly 150,000 affected people and has started distributing relief items including 10,000 hygiene kits, 10,000 water-purification kits, 15,000 mosquito nets and 20,000 traditional blankets (Malong) among other essential supplies.
Carin van der Hor, Plan’s Country Director in the Philippines, said: “The need is overwhelming. We are working with local government, UN and other humanitarian actors to reach out to the most vulnerable groups.”
Children continue to remain the main focus of Plan’s aid response. The organisation has distributed 290 tents in Iligan and 20 in Cagayan de Oro for use as shelters and temporary learning spaces for children. So far Plan has conducted eight sessions with 537 children and 87 adults in Cagayan de Oro to address their emotional needs.
Dr Unni Krishnan, Plan’s Disaster Response Policy Coordinator, said: “Children living in displaced settings and separated from families are extremely vulnerable. Their health, protection, emotional care and education should be the main priority.”
Plan has been working in the Philippines since 1961 and runs a project along with Unicef supporting children formerly associated with armed groups in parts of Mindanao. Even though Plan’s programme areas in Mindanao escaped the Typhoon, the organisation is responding to the overwhelming needs of thousands affected by the flood.
(Mardy Halcon is Communications Officer for Plan Philippines).
