Typhoon Reming Wreaked Havoc in Catanduanes, One of the Worst.

Awful site to behold! Those are tyhpoon Reming aftermath pictures that I lifted from deepskin's gallery,
http://www.catanduanes.info.
I hope he doesn't mind. I guess some of these pictures were taken from a military plane that flew to the province of Catanduanes to deliver relief goods to the typhoon victims..

I lived in Catanduanes for 16 years and I had experienced typhoon of this magnitude when I was in grade 3. Our house just as you see in the aftermath photos was torn asunder and all our personal belongings were either ruined, blown away or slobbered with mud. What a tragedy, indeed.

This recent tyhpoon was no different from the one I experienced some eons ago. I know how my fellow Catandunganons felt. I share your losses and your pain, but life must go on. Somehow, with God's help, you will manage to put your life together just as you used to by starting all over again.

To this date, I am worried sick over the safety of my 4 brothers who live in the typhoon strongest hit area, Bato. It is now Monday December 4, 2006; 5 days after the typhoon brought havoc in our island and still no news from my relatives. It is heartbreaking especially thinking of my poor little nephews who had to go through this terrible ordeal in their younger years. I couldn't even imagine how frightened they were as the typhoon blasted and made a direct hit to our beloved island. How did they manage to stay safe amidst all these destructions? Did they all get drenched? Did they sleep overnight with their clothes wet? Did they sleep with empty stomachs? I hope it will not forever leave a scar on these young ones as it were to me when I was a little girl.

We will not know for sure what they went through until we hear from them. My mind is wandering right now as to what exactly are they doing at this very moment. They are probably still in shock and confused or are thankful just to be alive. Or they are trying to retrieve parts of their houses like the tin roofs that were buffeted by the powerful wind so they don't have to sleep another night without a roof. I am afraid to accept that one of my brothers may have lost his house completely as it was made out of woods and nipa huts only unless there was some Divine intervention from up above. Waiting not knowing what is going on is killing me.

I still remember vividly the aftermath of the monstrous typhoon Sening some 35 plus years ago. My mother tried to recover the rice grains that were washed away into the ditch otherwise we would not have anything to eat. Fortunately, she managed to get some of it but eventually gave up when she became very ill after being exposed to unsanitary condition. She almost died! We were staying on a floor of our house with roof caved in. It surely was a traumatic experience for a little girl like me. However, it was not her time to go just yet so God let her live for another 35 years.

While it offers consolation to know that there were no casualties in the town of Bato, yet, on the other hand, it is saddening to know that 90% of the houses sustained substantial damage. Even strong built houses suffered a beating. All vegetations were strewn all over the ground. Looking at the aerial pictures of the island, Catanduanes, it looks like a war zone. It is an eerie sight to behold! Classes were suspended because school buildings were without roofs. The teachers will likely to give lessons in residential houses like when I was in grade 3.

I hope that all Catandunganons and filipinos alike will try to pitch in to help our poor kababayans recoup from these devastation. Every little help counts.