EDITORIAL — A mere sampling

Super Typhoon Carina has exited the Philippine Area of Responsibility. Like the weather disturbance that came before it it never made landfall in the country, but still its presence and impact was felt in the form of heavy rains.

As of this writing at least 14 people have been killed following floods and landslides brought about by Carina’s rains enhanced by the southwest monsoon. Aside from those confirmed dead, six deaths are still being validated while two are injured and another two missing.

The pictures and videos we see coming in from Metro Manila are heartbreaking; floodwaters engulfing entire subdivisions and communities, streets turned into rivers, cars being carried away by water like flotsam, and barges and boats being swept into bridges.

This is nothing to say of the damage to agriculture and human loss and suffering we don’t see happening in other parts of the country.

Once again we are being taught that nature is a force to be reckoned with, and that we should be prepared for when it goes awry.

Let us learn from disasters like these.

Storms, like others forces of cannot be bargained with, reasoned with, or asked to wait; they will happen in their own time. Usually this means when we are least prepared or when we least expect it.

We have more reason to be prepared for the unexpected. When before only danger zones and areas near esteros, rivers, and other waterways swelled with floodwaters during weather disturbances, areas that didn’t see previous flooding are now being affected. This isn’t just happening in Metro Manila but different parts of the country as well.

With land becoming more and more of a premium, many of those who cannot afford to buy land in some areas have to settle living in areas that aren’t considered safe. Even more concerning is that communities being built in the mountain areas have the tendency to denude forests, contributing even more to flooding.

We didn’t see the worst Carina had to offer, but what we saw was enough. Let us learn lessons from this mere sampling of nature’s wrath.