Disasters as great equalizer

When a natural calamity strikes affecting the lives of hundreds of thousands, everything takes a backseat, including sports, so that all hands are on deck to deal with undivided attention on the vicious aftermath of the catastrophic event. So it was when Mount Pinatubo started spewing volcanic ash on June 12, 1991 and enveloping large parts of Luzon in darkness.

Then, came the so-called climactic eruption, three days later, on June 15, which was further aggravated by typhoon “Dading” which directly hit Central Luzon and Metro Manila on the same day to produce a deadly combination of ash and rain. The rains mixed with ash caused lahar which covered thousands of hectares of farm lands, destroyed bridges and infrastructure and caused flooding in Luzon’s many waterways.

The Pinatubo eruption is according to various reports, the second largest eruption after that of Novarupta in the Alaska Peninsula in 1912. Estimates show that ash cloud from the volcano covered an area of about 125,000 square kilometers.

More than 800 people were killed from a combination of roofs bearing the weight of wet ash caving in on the fatalities and from diseases spawned by the eruption. We travelled to one of Zambales’s farthest towns, San Narciso, and saw how an old man in his 70s die after his heart failed due to severe asthma. It was not the first death we were to see in that trip as we witnessed others die in Porac, our hometown in Pampanga. The eruption inspired us and other fellow Manila-based Poraquenos to put up “Tindig Porac Development Foundation,” to help our town recover from the ravages of Pinatubo.

At that time we had a TV sports program, “Sports Life” on RPN 9 and we featured how government had taken over sports facilities and converted them to evacuation centers. During our taping of the show (which was mistaken by some female college students of a Catholic university who were also writing for their college paper, as an example of “insensitive politicians taking advantage of other people’s misery by appearing on TV and getting exposure”) we had said that “in times of national emergency, everything takes a backseat, including sports so that everyone can lend a helping hand. And this sports show is no exception.” We had also stated that disasters spares no one and doesn’t make distinctions between the rich and the poor and can thus be considered “the great equalizer.”

The PBA games were cancelled because of “the misery all around,” as stated in the league’s official announcement and to allow its stakeholders to participate in the relief efforts.

Other sports events were rescheduled. One of the near-casualties was the third title defense by Luisito Espinosa of his WBA bantamweight crown against Israel Contreras of Venezuela on October 18, 1991 at the Araneta Coliseum. There was talk of rescheduling the fight even if it was a good four months from the eruption. It was felt that the June eruption could only be the first among a series to follow. The fight pushed through and part of the proceeds from the ticket sales were turned over to “Tindig Porac.” Espinosa lost by fifth round TKO.

The fury of super typhoon Yolanda has struck a sympathetic and compassionate chord from all over the world. Over at the Philippine Super Liga (PSL) Grand Prix 2013, both the PSL officials and Mayor Guia Gomez of San Juan agreed that the proceeds from sales of tickets in the PSL games held at the San Juan Arena on Nov. 10 and 15 will be turned over to relief agencies.

The organizers of the yearly President’s Cup at Wack Wack Golf and Country Club (WWGCC) have decided to donate any expected cash surplus from the much-awaited golf tournament. WWGCC has also mounted a campaign among its members to raise cash and collect relief goods. Prior to Yolanda, WWGCC turned over its donation to ABS-CBN’s Sagip Kapamilya for the victims of the earthquake in Bohol and Cebu.

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We had a chance to play golf at the West course of WWGCC with former President Fidel V. Ramos several weeks ago during the (Foreign Affairs) Secretary Alberto del Rosario Cup. The tournament was organized by retired diplomats for the group’s various socio-civic projects. FVR, as the country’s 12th President, can still do 200-210 yards with his driver. He has scored 78 (Dec 31, 2007); 80 (May 11, 2013); 83 (July 30, 2013) and 84 (Sept 5, 2013) at the par 70 Camp Aguinaldo golf course.

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Is it true that Guillermo (Memo) Hernandez, whose real name is Angel Heredia, is now in the corner of Brandon Rios as strength and conditioning coach? Heredia had testified in San Francisco that he provided track stars Marion Jones and Tim Montgomery with illegal, performance enhancing substances. Heredia was then using Hernandez as his family name. Bay Area Laboratory Cooperative (BALCO) founder Victor Conte has affirmed Heredia’s involvement in performance enhancing activities. So, shall we see a souped-up Rios in Macau?