TALISAY, Philippines — The remnants of Tropical Storm Trami have left the Philippines to deal with one of the deadliest and most damaging weather systems to hit the country this year. The death toll and number of missing rose to 126 — 85 confirmed dead and 41 still missing, according to the country’s disaster-response agency. Heavy rain from the storm has caused severe flooding and landslides which have left communities cut off and complicated rescue operations.
On Saturday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. toured the affected areas, particularly those hit by heavy rainfall. For some provinces, the storm brought one to two months of rainfall equivalent in just 24 hours, more than what the flood control system was supposedly designed for. “The water was just too much,” said Marcos, who emphasized that magnitude of the crisis.
With the storm’s impact still evident in the many submerged and inaccessible areas, rescue operations continue. In fact, emergency workers are still having a hard time reaching some places said to be amongst the worst hit, with the depth of floodwaters even now too great for large trucks to wade through.
Tragic Losses and Ongoing Recovery Efforts
In the lakeside town of Talisay in Batangas province, rescue teams continue to search for missing persons. Using backhoes and sniffer dogs, they uncovered on Saturday the body of one of the last two missing villagers. Gut-wrenching scenes unfolded when a grieving father, who had waited for news of his missing 14-year-old daughter since Saturday, broke down in tears after rescue workers retrieved a body believed to be his child. A temporary morgue was set up in a basketball gym nearby, with more than a dozen white coffins containing the remains of people who died during the catastrophic landslides.
Thousands Forced to Evacuate Amid Severe Flooding
Tropical Storm Trami has affected over 5 million people, while almost 500,000 people had to seek shelter in 6,300 evacuation centers across several provinces. As the storm pounded the country, the government declared schools and government offices would stay shut for a third day on Friday to ensure peoples’ safety. The strandings also resulted in the suspension of inter-island ferry services, which stranded thousands of passengers and paralyzed travel in the archipelago.
Fortunately, the weather started to clear last Saturday, allowing clean-up operations in many areas to begin. However, the problems are expected to persist amidst concerns that the storm could make a U-turn next week and head back toward the Philippines due to shifting high-pressure winds in the South China Sea.
Government Vows to Tackle Climate Change Threats
In the wake of the recent devastation, President Marcos announced plans for a major flood control project to prepare the country for the extreme weather events linked to climate change. Climate change has already increased storm intensity, further causing multiple occurrences of flooding and landslides in the country.
Also Recommended Read : 2 dead, hundreds rescued in ‘dangerous’ New Mexico flash flooding
A Nation Prone to Destructive Storms
The Philippines belongs to the typhoon belt and is situated in the tropics, battered year in and year out by about 20 storms yearly. Many of these bring tremendous destruction because of its geographical location between the Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea, hence it is very vulnerable to weather disturbances. As a matter of fact, in 2013 Typhoon Haiyan, considered to be the strongest ever tropical cyclone, that has recorded killed more than 7,300 people either dead or missing, which was a horrible result from such an storm.
It is the recent devastation brought about by Tropical Storm Trami that has once again brought to the fore the urgent need to push disaster preparedness a notch higher, alongside sustainable infrastructure development, as proactive measures in mitigating risks in the future.
The tragedy brought about by Tropical Storm Trami is also a sad reminder of the country’s vulnerability in extreme weather conditions. As at least 126 are reported to have died or been left missing, this particular storm has indeed chugged across the country, displacing hundreds of thousands, with its residents now having to come to terms with huge losses and destruction. It’s a case where the balance gets destructed, and as rescue operations take over, perhaps attention may be placed more on creating a strong foundation within the infrastructure to face stormy outbreaks in the future. President Marcos’ commitment to the biggest flood control project signifies the urgency brought by the growing threats of climate change. It is important that the Philippines continues to make strides in improving disaster preparedness for its citizens and mitigating the impact of natural calamities in the years to come.
