Sunday, September 27

the flood...

i would've never thought it to happen to us
.
one minute i was playing with the dogs, trying to clean pearl's ears (oh wait, who's pearl? that's another storm altogether). from the terrace i watched the water rise, until we all started getting panicky.

rugs started to be rolled. then it was already to late to bring out the cars to higher ground.  we started grabbing everything in sight and carrying it to the second floor.
the last picture i took before utter panic was this:


the water about to breach the windows.  (when we inspected the damage later, the water line reached up to about 3 inches above the horizontal grill).  we gave up when we began to see snakes (tiny ones) swimming everywhere (yes,even inside the house).

absolutely helpless, we all retreated to the second floor (6 people and 3 dogs and 1 cockatiel). and the water continued to rise and rise and rise.


i tried not to think of my beloved car which had never, ever failed me, being swallowed by the dirty flood water. of my dad's car and my sister's car in the same garage.  of the cockatiels, budgies and the lone lovebird who were probably in panic over the rising water. of the books and photos from fiji and concep that i was not able to save. of all the furniture floating around. (yes, it was amazing, everything floated: the dining table, the antique four poster bed, the upholstered sofas, the carved chests, chairs, shelves, kitchen tables, even the chest freezer).

from my bedroom window, i watched people swimming in the street (video later), a brown shrike relentlessly fishing out drowning insects from the water, and my niece's plastic slide and swing set floating in circles in our front yard.

and just before the flood waters could breach our 6 foot fence. it stopped raining. and the flood waters started to recede.  in an hour we could survey the damage. it was heartbreaking. 

but then the people on the street shouted that there was a dead body in the creek.  and i saw that our next door neighbors lived in bungalows. and i heard the devastation all over metro manila on the news.

it will be a MAJOR overhaul, cleaning and tons of things to throw out.  but for me and my family, tomorrow the sun will shine, and everything will dry out. i still have a lot to be thankful for.

i read in the papers that yesterday typhoon ondoy dumped 341 milliliters of rain on metro manila in 6 hours. the averag rainfall for metro manila for september is 391.7 millilters. ano ba namang laban natin dun?

20 comments:

  1. Did the love bird survive?

    My sister Janice had to wait for the flood waters to recede from the roof of her bf's house in Marikina.

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  2. Trinks, I'm glad that you and your family are ok. I am sorry about your car and other valuables, but it could have been worse.

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  3. Trinket! I'm glad you're okay, and the flood subsided quickly where you live. But, so sorry for your losses. :(

    (But, isn't it amazing how everything floated? Water is so very powerful! Anyway, such a nerdy thought.)

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  4. glad to hear that you're ok... did the birds make it? and is that car the maroon honda i remember from mbb days? oh no...

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  5. and so i thought...how true could it be when there would be a deluge so catastrophic as that in noah's, when rains didnt stop for 40 days..
    but the flooding could have resulted to silted rivers and congested drainage, and swollen rivers..
    such a great loss, trinks, but thank God you're all safe... there is great pain in possessions lost, but greater gratitude is when you are all alive and safe. naka ka panick talaga as i watched in the tv what's happening there then..
    im still thinking what if the flood connects luzon to manila as it did in 1973?

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  6. just like you to see the silver lining hiding behind the clouds. wala nga tayong laban kay mother nature.
    and wait... you got a new dog?

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  7. Hi Trinket! I'm so sorry to hear this. But you're right, eventhough you have lost a lot of stuff, you have a lot of reasons still to be thankful.

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  8. So glad your ok. :) kahit sa lahat ng negative na nangyari may positive side parin. At least everyones safe, life is more impt than material things. :) pero tama si ana ang powerful ng water nabuhat niya ang antique na table niyo.

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  9. I am sorry to hear this bad news. We've been watching the news and was really worried of what's happening around, but it never entered my mind that you were one of those affected.

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  10. ate trinket!
    am glad to hear you are safe, so sorry about the damage.

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  11. Thank God you guys were safe, how about Kuya Adri and his family sa Bulacan??

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  12. so sorry to hear about your predicament. talagang hindi mo kasi aakalain that it will get that bad. i'm glad that you and your family are safe though and i pray that everything truly precious to you may be restored.

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  13. Maybe, this is just an idea, it would be good to invest in life vests and a rubber boat (that you inflate only if there is a storm). Or at least big floaters you can use in case of a situation like this. Or maybe this is more appropriate for those who live in Marikina, Cainta, and Pasig?

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  14. Naalala ko pa na binaha rin kayo dati pero few inches lang.:-(
    Di ko naisip na mangyayari ito sa inyo uli.
    Hay....

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  15. thanks so much for all the notes of concern. as each day passes by, i realise how lucky we were. maybe god just wanted to tell us that it was time to throw out accumulated trash.
    neighbors have been dropping by with food and various favors.

    i had the cars towed to honda today, and there were probably more than two hundred water damaged cars in line before us! puts perspective on the amount of damage done.

    by the way, except for our goldfish from our 4 outdoor ponds and water bowls (all floated away), all our pets survived. :) thankfully, the birds' wooden houses floated and provided them perches from the rising water.

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  16. grabe... intense ng bagyo. glad you're safe ate trinks. :)

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  17. i'd like to think our house is high enough, but after last weekend, i guess you never know what to expect!

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  18. grabe trinket. I just read your blog entry. I wish I was there to help clean up. It's very easy to feel helpless when you're here in North America.

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  19. Trinket! There are so many memories in that home. I'm glad you are all safe. Bing's family is in Marikina and they were barely spared as well. Thankful still that they are all safe. Take care.

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  20. hi trinket
    i know this is a bit late but just found your blog. we are in massachusetts and every year, we prepare for what the winter might bring, ice cold temps, snow up to 6 feet high, ice sheets if the snow thaws and the temps freeze again- sounds horrible but in reality, quite predictable. not unlike what i remember living in quezon city and surrounded by climate challenges every step of the way, your good attitude clearly commands you to move forward because there are others that are worse off.
    keep inspiring others, life is giving you a lot in terms of inner strength and peace! thanks for keeping everyone informed! hope to see you soon! gigi castro

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