DAVAO – Storms and typhoons do not usually cross this far south of the country, and indeed, one of the selling points of Mindanao is that its weather is calmer than in the Visayas and Luzon. So when tropical storm Sendong entered the country through the back door, as it were, few knew what was in store. There was a sense of foreboding because storms are such a rarity, but on the whole, Mindanaoans slept soundly on Friday night secure in the thought that whatever was coming surely was not so strong as to wreak havoc. For the people of northern Mindanao – particularly Cagayan de Oro City and Iligan City – the threat of a storm was not tangible.

It did not help that the warnings came practically on the day of the storm itself. Malacañang has claimed that PAGASA had given adequate warning, but the truth is that it did not. While international weather stations had been tracking Sendong for days and even some weather bloggers were already giving warnings, PAGASA surprised Mindanao by placing areas in the island under storm signals only Friday, December 16, just hours before the weather disturbance was to make landfall. And even then the warnings were moderate at best. One would think that after 2009’s Ondoy and even the June 29 Davao City flash flood, government would err on the side of caution and, even at the risk of sounding alarmist, tell the people on the storm’s path to evacuate immediately.

Of course the culprit here is not just the storm itself but also the environmental destruction that had been continuing on Mindanao by logging, mining, and other such ecologically intrusive industries. Storms do come and go, and the earth is normally prepared for their occurrence. But with the land’s condition the way it is, heavy rains inevitably cause flash floods that can destroy everything in their path. The blame, then, does not belong only to government but to everyone who has had a hand in destroying the environment.

What is obvious is that unless a holistic and comprehensive program is instituted that includes environment protection and disaster management, our country will continue to experience tragedies such as this. We have had so many wake-up calls that have gone unheeded; let’s not let it happen again.

Jon Joaquin is the managing editor of the largest circulation newspaper in Mindanao, the Mindanao Daily Mirror in Davao City.

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