Flood spawns urban legend

MANILA, Philippines - Rumors about an old man who, denied drinking water at a posh village, caused the flooding in Metro Manila is spreading like wildfire in typhoon-devastated Marikina and other affected areas.

Stories abound that an old man begged for water in one of the posh subdivisions last Sept. 26 but was told by an arrogant homeowner that they have no drinking water.

“You have no water? I’ll give you plenty of water,” the old man reportedly said as he left.

Moments after the old man left, heavy rain began pounding the posh village. Hours later, it was already submerged and people were scampering to their rooftops.

Similar accounts were told in other areas hard-hit by the recent floods. The accounts varied, with some versions attributing the calamity to an old woman or a disabled person seeking help from residents.

A man interviewed by The STAR along the Tatalon area said that prior to the flood, he saw a woman cradling a baby and begging for food and water. He said he later learned residents had driven the woman away and she cursed them.

There were also rumors circulating at a jeepney terminal in Cubao that an old man carrying a stick cursed a woman who shooed him away after he asked for water.

“You will drown in plenty of water,” the man was quoted by vendors in the area, who recalled that 500 passenger jeepneys and vans plying the Marikina and Rizal route was submerged by the flood.

Yesterday, an old man carrying a stick near North EDSA in Quezon City caused panic among passengers of a jeepney, who said they feared that the old man resurfaced to warn of impending disaster.

At the sight of the man, some nervous jeepney passengers eagerly searched their pockets for loose change and bills to appease the person they described as a “holy beggar.”

“Salamat sa tulong, nabaha kami at wala kaming pagkain (Thanks for the help we are flood victims and we have no food),” the old man was quoted as saying.