YESTERDAY until dawn, residents of Cagayan de Oro City had to suffer the cold and wet night as their homes were flooded and many were stranded in their equally flooded offices and schools. It was a long night for all of them.
The ones on higher places can hardly sleep in fear that the waters would reach them or in waiting for their family members to arrive home, young students included. Those on lower areas now have to deal with thick mud and the long-saved for appliances and furniture that are now trashed.
For the poor and middle-class families, it's never easy to recover from such devastation. The vehicles, the appliances, the home furniture, and the houses themselves are lifetime savings. Anyone who loses all these will have to go back to zero and start anew.
This can bring about realizations that maybe there is indeed wisdom in living light, where only the basics will be acquired and used, where the videokes and televisions and radios will no longer be essentials, and it will just be down to the gas stove and refrigerators and electric fans.
Or, for the people to quickly adapt to the times, this is not the first time the place was flooded. There was Typhoon Sendong. But while indeed yesterday's rain was just caused by a low pressure area, by this time, we should all know that hours-long heavy rainfall can be as devastating as a typhoon.
Those plastic containers that are sold in malls can easily be made water tight by rubber strips. Keep a few of those for any eventuality. First to go in are the valuable documents. Second, the small electronics. Clothes can be wrapped in garbage bags. Appliances can be stacked above tables or shelves.
While it's most tempting to just pack up and live on higher grounds, we know that houses are lifetime investments as well, and that may not be possible. Preparedness, then, is the key. There's a lot to learn from doomsday preppers, as well. Although we don't have to live in paranoia as they do. We can still enjoy our lives and the blessings each day bring while we read up about what to expect.
By the way, the most important thing to keep in the house is... water. Yes, we have potable water out of our faucets, but this can easily be contaminated when the city is flooded. Store some.