Let’s do our share to lessen the suffering of the victims of storm Sendong.
***
President Benigno Aquino wants the country’s disaster management plan reviewed following the deaths and devastation caused by Sendong.
This time, he did not blame anybody as what he did to Nilo Prisco, the former head of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) who Aquino berated in a meeting in the presence of media.
Perhaps he has learned his lesson about the unpredictability of weather and other natural aberrations.
It’s CDO Mayor Vicente Emano who is complaining.
In a radio interview, Emano justified their lack of preparation for the disaster with the absence of warning from the weather bureau that Cagayan de Oro would be in the eye of the storm.
Executive Director Benito Ramos of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council that the path taken by Sendong was not “the usual path.”
He said they were expecting tropical storm Sendong to hit Central Visayas. “ Kung hagip ang Central Mindanao, ang experience ng ating mga kababayan d’yan, ang pinakamataas na ay 60-millimeters ng tubig na madala ng bagyo. Ang nangyari, 181-millimeters ang dinala n’ya. (Even if it were to hist Central Mindanao, the experience of our countrymen there, at the highest would be 60 mm/hr of rainfall. What happened was it brought 181 mm/hr)” he said.
Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Undersecretary Manuel L. Quezon III said “There’s an ongoing review of (the use of heavy rainfall volume in storm warning signals) as heavy rains increasingly posing separate peril from old signal system based on winds.”
Quoting PAGASA officer-in-charge Graciano Yumul Quezon said “For the month of December, normal rainfall for CDO is 113.2mm. The December 16, 2011 volume at 180.9mm in one day in Lumbia is greater than a whole month’s rain.”
Just like “Ondoy” that devastated many parts of Metro Manila and Luzon two years years ago.
But there was a report that The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), a joint project between the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), shared data it gathered Thursday that storm Washi (Sendong) was already carrying “very heavy rainfall of over 50mm/hr .” Ondoy unloaded 56.83 mm/hr of rainfall on Metro Manila in September 2009.
ABS-CBN report said “Around the same day, Philippine state weather bureau PAGASA and the disaster management agency NDRRMC predicted only a 10-25 mm per hour rainfall amount for Sendong.
“The highest storm warning signal raised over areas affected by Sendong was only signal number 2.”
This is not the time for finger-pointing. Let us first bury the dead and take care of the sick and the homeless.
I have one request when they start reviewing the disaster management program: Can they please change the name of NDRRMC into something easy to remember and pronounce?
Fr Interaksyon:
Using international and US meteorological services, weather blogger TyphoonK was tracking the disturbance that would ultimately become Typhoon Sendong as early as December 10.
Three days later, the blogger warned on the site and its accompanying Facebook page, K’s Weather and More, that the system “looks like it may become a meanie”.
“It was not until 5 pm Thursday that Pagasa decided to
announce that a storm was headed in – less than 24 hours before its forecast landfall!”
Plainly, the blogger said, “It caught (Pagasa and LGUs) by surprise.”
The blogger asks in exasperation: “How can a typhoon that has been under observation by NOAA for almost a week, has kept pretty much to its forecast track, has made landfall 12 hours before, and has been travelling across Mindanao and the Visayas, take anyone BY SURPRISE?
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/19907/sendong-looked-like-a-meanie-as-early-as-dec–13-but-weather-blogger-went-unheeded
http://www.typhoonk.com/sendong.htm
“How can a typhoon that has been under observation by NOAA for almost a week, has kept pretty much to its forecast track, has made landfall 12 hours before, and has been travelling across Mindanao and the Visayas, take anyone BY SURPRISE?
Palusot na lang yan kasi natutulog sila sa pansitan!
Zip my lips muna ako, can’t bear to look at the photos of Sendong’s victims. It’s sad really sad…
From President Aquino’s 2011 SONA:
Where was this when tropical storm Sendong came?
President Aquino has lectured us, not just on one occasion, on the importance of accurate weather forecast.
Following is his answer to a question posed by Ted Failon during the interview with anchors of three TV networks after the Aug. 23,2010 Rizal Park hostage taking tragedy:
Q: Ginoong Pangulo, going back po doon sa nangyari ho ano na ito ho ay nagbunga ngayon ng napakalaking problema, ilang linggo na ang nakakaraan ito pa rin po ang pinag-uusapan natin and thank you so much po for the time na lahat nga ng issues na gustong itanong po ay itanong na ngayon. So, nabanggit nyo po na lahat dapat dumaan sa proseso, huwag nating husgahan itong mga ito dahil po sa meron pang IIRC investigation pero inyo rin pong inamin na talaga pong napikon kayo at dismayado po kayo sa inyong napanuod at nakita at naging bunga po ng resulta ho ng mga taong tinatawag nyong experts. Three days after nag-offer mag-leave si Magtibay at pinagbigyan so wala pong nag-offer mag-resign, wala pong nagsabing na para hindi na umabot pa sa inyo ang init, walang hong Puno o Robredo o Santiago o Magtibay na nagkusa hong mag-resign. So, hindi ngayon naiaalis sa ilan po nating mga kababayan iyon pong pagkumpara kay Prisco Nilo ng PAGASA. Si Nilo po ay nagkamali sa forecast at meron pong sinasabing di pagkakaunawaan, wala naman hong gaano po doong napinsala pero agad pong ni-relieve. Just clarify lang po ano po, ni-relieve po kaagad si Prisco Nilo pero in this case po ang laki po ng pinsala nito wala pong ni-relieve ang inyong administrasyon Sir?
PNOY: Hindi ho tama iyong kakaunti ang napinsala nung panahon nung kay Nilo ano at hindi naman ho tamang ni-relieve siya kaagad. Dumaan po iyong DOST at saka siya iyong DOST Secretary natin at siya ang nag-usap ano at inalam kung ano talaga ang dahilan bakit napakamali nung kanilang prediction. Iyong ang galing ho noong propaganda arm niya o iyong sympathizers niya na sinasabi puro equipment.
Pero amongst the things na nadiskubre e iyong mga alam moi ayaw ko na sana na pag-usapan iyan dahil pababayaan ko na siyang manahimik ano pero brining-up na nyo para alam na rin po ng taong-bayan. Hindi ka ba nagtataka Ted bakit nung World War II inilusob iyong Normandy Beach Head, iyong technology, ang importante dun iyong weather. Masama iyong weather at sinabi merong window ng dalawang araw. Iyong Incheon Landing sa South Korea ganon din ,may epekto iyong tide kung makaka-landing iyong mga landing barge sa paglusob ni Mc Arthur sa likod nung mga North Koreans di ba? 1944 iyong isa, 1950-51 iyong pangalawa, kaya nilang i-predict iyong accuracy nung weather.
Ang lumalabas ngayon iyong isa sa ginagamit diyan weather balloons nagchi-check nung pressure di ba? High pressure and low pressure area at dun sa briefing doon ko na talaga naintindihan aaminin ko po itutulak iyong ating mga storm fronts sa low pressure. So importante malaman mo saan iyong low pressure, saan iyong high pressure lumalabas kulang iyong mga lobong pinalipad para ma-determine.
What happened in our city is the result of continuous irresponsible mining and illegal logging in the hinterlands barangays of cagayan de oro. chinese and koreans are raping our environment courtesy of corrupt DENR OFFICIALS, DYSFUNCTIONAL CITY OFFICIALS AND THE PASSIVE CULTURE OF THE COMMUNITY – THE FREAKING MAYOR SHOULD BE HANGED. He has done nothing but increase criminality and disorder among communities. Indirectly, he is a criminal himself coddling these environment rapists. Almost every night, big trucks fully loaded with logs are in convoy going to their destinations. This is what happens if the citizens will continue to sell their votes to the highest TRAPO bidder. It’s time an independent party should seriously implement voter education especially in the hinterlands and slum areas. The root cause of all our suffering is we have the wrong “leaders” and “servants”.
If you’re from Mindanao you’ll laugh off talks of flooding, most people there think flooding only happens in Manila.
Rapid urbanization, deforestation, siltation, etc, etc, it was bound to happen.
We can track storms, but nobody ever anticipated degree of devastation, Sendong even had lesser rainfall than Ondoy.
A better reaction would be to map out all drop off points for relief goods in Manila, so we can help out instead of blaming anyone.
We have a rapidly growing population resulting to rapid urbanization, where do you put the people in, the cities are congested? You do the math.
NASA predicted ‘Ondoy-like’ rains for ‘Sendong’
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/-depth/12/17/11/nasa-predicted-ondoy-rains-sendong
PNoy partying while thousands suffers? Hope this is not true.
http://twitpic.com/7v0x8c
Why wouldn’t PAGASA or the gov’t for that matter just rely on more accurate predictions of other international observatories? It not only could save more lives and properties, it could definitely save on tax payers money by abolishing PAGASA.
I went tp two christmas parties today, nobody seemed to care at all.
This calamity is really sad. People in the affected areas need help at this time. Maybe it’s time to set aside political bickering for the moment.
Some people can be just plain nitpickers. What do they hope to achieve if the President does not go there at once? I’m sure the Mayors and Governors will really be happy. Why? Because the responsibility of responding to the disaster will be taken off them. Napakabobo naman nang mga tinamaan ng magaling na local officials yan. Lahat na yata ng Pinoy e may internet access. Ultimo elementary students ay nasa Facebook at Twitter. At di sila aware sa lagay ng panahon sa nasasakupan nila at kailangan pa talaga silang pasubalian ng PAGASA? Huwag nyo kaming bolahin. I have been a member of the different RDCC/PDCC/MDCC disaster response units kung saan man ako nakadestino noon. Integral part nang Preparedness plan ang timely information dissemination. Lahat ng mga disaster response units na ito ay may internet connectivity at nakatutok sa Japan Meteorological Administration, NOAA, PAGASA at iba pa. Bullshit na palusot yang di naabisuhan. Ano ang ginagawa nila sa calamity funds nila kung ni internet connection ay wala sila?
Tanungin muna natin kung ano ang ginawa ni Mayor, Governor at Congressman ng probinsiya. What were the preparations made. Ano ang ginugulan ng gastos ng Calamity funds nila? Saan napunta ang pork barrel ni Cong? May disaster plan ba talaga ang probinsya? Meron bang evacuation plan in case of massive flooding? Were there resources prepositioned? What were the affected populace supposed to do if there’s a need to evacuate? Was there in fact an evacuation ordered? When was this? Trabaho ng LGU lahat ito. Kung responsable ang namumuno, monitored dapat ito lahat. Hapon pa lang dapat may senyales na sila na magkakaroon ng massive flooding. Bakit hinintay pa ang gabi? Dapat itong mga Governors ay pag seminarin sa disaster preparedness sa Governor ng Negros Occidental. Hands-on ang Governor doon. Kumpleto ang gamit in case may mangyari. Hindi sila umaasa lang sa PAGASA. Meron sila mismong Monitoring Center complete with computers to track weather disturbances. In short, hindi sila pabaya. Ang Sendong ay parang Frank that devastated Panay in 2008 where thousands died. YUn ang pagtuunan ng pansin. Wala ng probinsya ang ligtas sa perwisyo ng bagyo. Naniningil na ang kalikasan sa sobrang pang-aabuso rito. Pag nasa dadaanan ka ng bagyo, u are in harm’s way. Get out of the way ASAP. It’s as simple as that. You don’t need the PAGASA to tell u that. That’s common sense dear Mayors and Governors.
Utak pasikatero/a lang ang mga manunulat na mga yan. Ano’t sa presidente agad ang sisi. Dapat talaga mayor at gobernador ang nasa first line nang ganitong kaganapan. Eh ano pa nga ba ang aasahan natin sa mga manunulat na gustong mapansin. Kahit hindi na totoo ang sinusulat o walang batayan.