Our backyard during Typhoon Ondoy. My whole basement was under water.
"Will there be another Ondoy in my lifetime?"
A few months ago I chanced upon an article that mentioned that the sea level will rise by at least 1.3 meters (as predicted by scientists) in the next century. I realized that it was probably the reason why the shoreline of our hideaway beach place in Bicol was eating up the land area. When I was a kid we could walk around the coral reef during low tide. In the past few years I noticed that you have to wade around in waist high water just to get on the reef (plus the reef shrank!). And whenever it rains a small creek forms at the side of our place. My Aunt said that there's been flooding in the past few years. Climate change or due to deforestation, I don't know.
I dread experiencing another Ondoy. It's not about losing things. It's about facing your mortality and questioning if you'll be safe ever again. And I've been losing sleep over that since that dreadful day Ondoy swept in floodwater in my room where I found myself in waist high to chest-deep water in less than 5 minutes. I'm glad I got out without getting grounded and I just managed to grab my hand bag. And I didn't have it that bad, my 87-year old uncle stayed on his roof at Provident Village for about 24 hours before getting rescued.
I read too that there is no stopping the ice caps from melting. This is caused by climate change. It's time for each of us to take action to slow-down the ice caps from melting. I don't even want to think about whether it is possible for our whole country to go under water.
I read that the only way to slow down climate change governments have to take big active steps. Hello President Obama, I hope the US can make the biggest initiative on this, my government is kinda very busy right now with the calamity. Please?
I say let's each lessen our carbon footprint, at least we can help in our own little way.
This post was written in support of Blog Action Day.
Ondoy can come in many forms but we are lucky to have gone through it alive. I was luckier 'coz I didn't experience the flood. But I still need to help the world. Like you said, lessen our carbon footprint.
ReplyDeleteI cannot say so much about "flooding" because I haven't been caught in one. But seeing those people suffering from the wrath of Ondoy and Pepeng makes me weak in the knees. It's a sad reality. I am hoping and praying that we, Filipinos, will act now before it's too late. Climate is changing, and so should we.
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