A month after the perfect storm

screencap from unosat

A month after Haiyan-Yolanda, the Tacloban mayor is still hurt by the criticisms he got from Pnoy. words. The mayor said Pnoy should have first come to the aid of the city before criticizing how his city government dealt with the storm. 

Aside from the strength of the storm, many factors impact the level of devastation to an area. One is the distance from the storm's direct path. Another is the physical geography, topology, and elevation. We cannot change these natural and physical characteristics in several days before the storm.

Another factor that might affect the impact would be the population and population density. And lastly, the preparations for the storm. I am sure someone will come up with some measure how each of these factors contributed to the amount of destruction each place got.

Judging from the UNOSAT map of the typhoon's path, Ormoc, Bogo, and Guiuan are nearer to the typhoon's path than Tacloban. Using population density and elevation data available from the Internet, Bogo and Kalibo have lower elevation than Tacloban. Kalibo and Roxas also have larger population density than Tacloban. Bantayan Island's population density approximates that of Tacloban, but Bantayan's death count is lower. 

Further on, I hope the NDRRMC can come up with numbers on Yolanda deaths per 1000 population of each LGU. There are places that incurred minimal casualties when people listened to warnings from their authorities. I hope people would now listen to warnings given by authorities, that is, if local authorities are doing their jobs.

City/  Municipality	Distance from Yolanda's  eye (km)	Elevation  (m)	Population Density (people/ sqkm)
Tacloban	35	7	1,100
Guiuan	20	56	270
Homonhon	5	53	270
Bantayan	0	30	1,030
Coron	0	142	62
Bogo	20	1	680
Kalibo	25	4	1,600
Ormoc	0	25	310
Tulong Diot	40
Roxas City	20	148	1,600

Easy does IT

My Tacloban trip went smoothly. I was able to install the programs and configure the computers much more quickly than in other trips. That always happen when everyone does their jobs as they're supposed to. Easy does IT.

So I had more time to tour the city. After almost twenty years since my first trip here, I notice that urbanization (as indicated by the numerous fastfood chains and other restaurants), has slowly crept in.

I also surmise that Tacloban folks love their medicine well. There must be more Mercury drugstores here per square kilometer than any other city in the Philippines. Counting the other drugstores as well, there are more drugstores here than elsewhere. I also noticed that there are a few from out-of-town med reps that stay in my hotel.

Tacloban is almost as clean as Palawan and Legazpi. This city has pride just like Cebu. They strictly implement the no jaywalking rule and other traffic rules. Tricycle drivers are also careful not to pick up fare in restricted zones. I tried crossing a not so busy street, and I was reminded by traffic aides to please observe the no-crossing signs. I gladly complied. I wish Metro Manila does the same.

 

White hair chronicles XXXII: Tacloban - I have returned

I had a USAID-funded project in Tacloban City almost twenty years ago. That project started a string of other projects that involved traveling, but Tacloban was among the first. When I had the chance to work briefly in East Africa ten years ago, I was reminded of Tacloban though I'm not sure why. Now I'm back in Tacloban for my current work, and I realize why I thought of this city while I was in Dar Es Salaam.

Dar (10 years ago, at least) is a quiet city. It was just recovering from a horrendous terrorist bombing. When I wanted to while away the time, I looked for a mall or a moviehouse. The small malls (actually boutiques) closed early. And the entire city had just 4 moviehouses, all showing Indian Bollywood movies. It had no tall buildings but it had a busy international port. The people were proud of their heritage. You could feel the nation's soul.

That picture reminded me of the Tacloban I knew. Quiet. People are off the streets by 9pm. No fastfood chains, no department stores. And a noisy port near a public wholesale market.

That was then. Now there's a Gaisano's and a new Robinson's mall just outside the city. There are several Jollibees and the usual fastfood chains. There is even mild traffic in the morning. It is still far from the buzz of activities in other cities but it is getting there. One thing I notice though, many hotels have sprouted (and degenerated) since then. But it is still hard to find a good Tacloban hotel. The reviews at Taclobanhotels.com are spot on.

But it is nice to have returned.