The recent disaster that befell Bicol province and parts of Southern Luzon after tropical storm "Kristine" pummeled Luzon last week should serve as a wake-up call to all.
Even with the region's prior experience of equally devastating typhoons, "Kristine" clearly found most Bicolanos off-guard, as the region suffered floods that, in some areas, reached above the roofs of houses.
As this editorial was being written, reports of flooding, landslides and damage to property have been reported in Laguna province due to "Kristine" - but not as devastating as everyone had feared.
So far.
The next time, Laguna province may not be so fortunate.
Once again, local and national government agencies are bound to discuss how to deal with a terrifying truth: the effects of climate change mean that weather disturbances are bound to be more extreme, causing even more casualties and damage to properties.
LGUs in the province have touted efforts to ensure not just speedier disaster response but a whole catalogue of infrastructure works that aim to mitigate the effects of these increasingly intense weather disturbances.
But there’s one critical aspect that, in the view of this newsmagazine, has always been overlooked: how to ensure that our cities and towns will be spared the worst effects of these calamities.
We’re talking about building homes, schools, and other structures that can withstand high winds and floods. We’re talking about ensuring that no family will find themselves having to go up to the roof during floods, or going home to find their cherished possessions swept away by rising waters.
Nobody seems to want to discuss it except worried urban architects and experts who have continually sounded the alarm on the dismal state of ensuring that our cities will be, if not completely “disaster-proof,” be at least spared the increasingly devastated effects of typhoons.
There’s two main reasons for that.
One, it’s going to cost us all – quite literally. Two, the spirit of the Filipino, with our predilection for “quick fixes,” is bound to rebel against the notion that we have to spend time, money and effort on long-lasting measures.
The devil’s in the details, sure. But if we don’t commit ourselves now to being proactive, then we are sure to pay a devil’s price: widespread damage and deaths during calamities.
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