The land of typhoon, it's one of many names I gave to The Philippines as many typhoons land on the archipelago; at least 20 typhoons a year. Some are moderate and some are destructive typhoons like the two typhoons that have just battered this country: typhoon Ketsana (It's called Ondoy in Philippines) and typhoon Parma (it's Pepeng in Philippines).
Before I moved to this country, I have warned by the locals about the typhoons. I had never experience a typhoon passing through the country I lived in. The closest experience I encountered was when I stayed in Hongkong for a couple of days, I saw a typhoon warning on the TV I was watching interrupting the show. But at that time it was only warning 1 (the typhoon was not severe).
The typhoon fact was one of many factors that made me think twice about moving here, but then I had no choice.
So now, here I am in the land of typhoon. In my 4th month of living in this country, I have been experiencing more than 5 typhoons with 2 very destructive typhoons came one after another.
If you followed the news, you would see how bad the last 2 destructive typhoons have affected every one living in this country directly and indirectly.
When the typhoon Ketsana made a landfall in the country, we didn't expect it would pour so much water from the sky. The number of rain water poured down in 24 hours equivalent to the number of rain water poured down in a month. It hit directly in the heart of Metro Manila areas on Saturday, 26 September 2009.
At that time, in the morning, we were on the way to Alabang (in Metro Manila) to take our children for some fun at the Festival Mall. The rain was not too heavy.
When we were about to enter the toll road, we were warned by the officer not to proceed to our destination because some areas along the toll road were already flooded.
So, we decided to take the children to a nearby mall instead. But then, before we reached the place, again, another officer informed us that the flood water on the way to that mall was very high. He asked us to turn back and go back home. When we drove back home, we were trapped in a traffic jam caused by a flash flood that was pretty deep. We realized that the typhoon was very bad and it was really not adviseable to go anywhere. On the way home, the rain poured down so heavily we couldn't see the road! All we could do just pray so that we could reach home safely.
Thank God we managed to arrive home safely and we quickly turned our TV on to watch the news. Then we knew that we missed the heavy flood thanks to the officer who informed us along the way. We couldn't imagine if we were trapped in the flood with the children.
Praise the Lord my family was not affected directly but for sure the experience taught us good lesson that never underestimate the power of a typhoon and it is never wrong to be too prepared for the worst case scenario.
So, when typhoon Parma made a landfall the following week, we knew we should just stay at home and watch the news. I even had waterproofed everything, moved valuable things to the higher ground, bought food supply, and prepared all the emergency equipments such as torch light and emergency light. We tried to be prepared as much as we could. We pray everyday for God's protection and God does protect us always. Thank you, God for loving us that much. We also pray for the people that are not as lucky as we are. We tried to help by giving some donations as much as we could. Since this incident, I heard many stories about how bad the typhoon can destroy their lives but they just have to get back to their feet as soon as possible to build a new life.
I'm amazed with their spirit. No matter how bad the typhoon battered their lives, they continue their lives with the smile on their face. God bless them.
As I'm typing this entry, there's another typhoon coming our way next week. If you want to follow the typhoon news in the Philippines, you can visit this website: www.typhoon2000.com
Before I moved to this country, I have warned by the locals about the typhoons. I had never experience a typhoon passing through the country I lived in. The closest experience I encountered was when I stayed in Hongkong for a couple of days, I saw a typhoon warning on the TV I was watching interrupting the show. But at that time it was only warning 1 (the typhoon was not severe).
The typhoon fact was one of many factors that made me think twice about moving here, but then I had no choice.
So now, here I am in the land of typhoon. In my 4th month of living in this country, I have been experiencing more than 5 typhoons with 2 very destructive typhoons came one after another.
If you followed the news, you would see how bad the last 2 destructive typhoons have affected every one living in this country directly and indirectly.
When the typhoon Ketsana made a landfall in the country, we didn't expect it would pour so much water from the sky. The number of rain water poured down in 24 hours equivalent to the number of rain water poured down in a month. It hit directly in the heart of Metro Manila areas on Saturday, 26 September 2009.
At that time, in the morning, we were on the way to Alabang (in Metro Manila) to take our children for some fun at the Festival Mall. The rain was not too heavy.
When we were about to enter the toll road, we were warned by the officer not to proceed to our destination because some areas along the toll road were already flooded.
So, we decided to take the children to a nearby mall instead. But then, before we reached the place, again, another officer informed us that the flood water on the way to that mall was very high. He asked us to turn back and go back home. When we drove back home, we were trapped in a traffic jam caused by a flash flood that was pretty deep. We realized that the typhoon was very bad and it was really not adviseable to go anywhere. On the way home, the rain poured down so heavily we couldn't see the road! All we could do just pray so that we could reach home safely.
Thank God we managed to arrive home safely and we quickly turned our TV on to watch the news. Then we knew that we missed the heavy flood thanks to the officer who informed us along the way. We couldn't imagine if we were trapped in the flood with the children.
Praise the Lord my family was not affected directly but for sure the experience taught us good lesson that never underestimate the power of a typhoon and it is never wrong to be too prepared for the worst case scenario.
So, when typhoon Parma made a landfall the following week, we knew we should just stay at home and watch the news. I even had waterproofed everything, moved valuable things to the higher ground, bought food supply, and prepared all the emergency equipments such as torch light and emergency light. We tried to be prepared as much as we could. We pray everyday for God's protection and God does protect us always. Thank you, God for loving us that much. We also pray for the people that are not as lucky as we are. We tried to help by giving some donations as much as we could. Since this incident, I heard many stories about how bad the typhoon can destroy their lives but they just have to get back to their feet as soon as possible to build a new life.
I'm amazed with their spirit. No matter how bad the typhoon battered their lives, they continue their lives with the smile on their face. God bless them.
As I'm typing this entry, there's another typhoon coming our way next week. If you want to follow the typhoon news in the Philippines, you can visit this website: www.typhoon2000.com
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