I am one of Ted’s employees who experienced the said worst hit of typhoon “Ondoy”. For 26 years of my life, this is the first time that I experienced the said kind of flood. Our place (Malabon) is well-known for being a flooded area during wet and dry (due to high tide) season. But this thing is really different and shocking, Ted is right when I got on the 2nd floor of our house, I was really shock to saw 30 people in our house not to mention another 30 person staying on the 3rd floor of our house. My mom is crying that time and I ask her why, she told me that she just feel lucky and thankful to the Lord that we have that kind of house where total of 60 people can stay though the 1st floor of the house where some of the appliances located was with chest deep water. As always God is good!

Another story that I wanted to share is the kindness of my partner. He is a reserve officer of Armed Forces of the Philippines. He was the one helping on the “Ondoys” Rescue and Relief Operation in Pasig , Marikina and Taguig. At first, I was really nervous when he told me that their Commanding Officer advised them that they have to be in the said operation and he want to be there. But in the middle of our conversation he told me one thing “I really have to join the operation, because I am bless, we are bless. Because we still have our house, our family and I still have you. People on the said area didn’t lost only there house but also their family. I don’t have any money to share or to donate, I only have my heart who wanted to helped them”. And after he said that, I hugged him and said “ Go my savor! Save more people and my prayers will always be with you”

I won’t forget this experience for the rest of my life and I won’t forget how God love and protect me and my love ones.

It was a typical Saturday morning, September 26 that was. Yes, it rained the whole night, but that was just normal. For me, I thought it was just like any other rainy day. There was no precautionary measures coming from the media on how destructive Typhoon Ondoy is, so it seems like everyone thought just what I thought, it was just one of those low signal typhoons that will eventually pass us by. But we were wrong, dead wrong. The events that unfolded the next 24 hours were just as surreal, similar to having a nightmare. You see, I live near Marikina. I normally pass by Marikina on everyday commute, and the devastation to that place and its nearby cities were heart wrenching. Typhoon Ondoy took Metro Manila by surprise, in one glimpse everything one has worked for was washed away in the flood. And in that one passing moment, no one was spared from the distraught, not even the rich people, who were as badly hit as anyone – an entire exclusive village submerged in murky water, with people waiting 12 hours on top of their roof to be rescued. Cars were abandoned literally in the middle of the highway, just to be able to reach safe ground. It just shows that at the end of the day, material possessions are irrelevant, that in a snap, all can be taken away from you – your big house, your shiny red convertible, your flat screen TV, all these and more are unfortunately, not flood-resistant.

I am a victim of Typhoon Ondoy, no, better put, a survivor of it. That day, it washed away the first floor of our house, with water 5 and half feet deep inside, and almost 8 feet outside the street. No one was home except for my dog that was upstairs and so we did not get the chance to move anything on higher ground. We were stranded for 36 hours on the road, sleeping at a gasoline station just until the flood subsides and we can go home. We attempted to walk on foot to try and reach home, but couldn’t because the entire highway was filled with murky water, about 5 feet deep. People who desperately need to go home have to hang on to ropes or trees along Marcos Highway so that the water current wouldn’t take them. I remember accounts of people who treaded along the highway saying that there was one particular instance that a body of a corpse bumped in to them while being washed away by the current of flooding water. It was terrifying, and between the time we were stranded and when we finally reached home, there was nothing left for us to do but converse with our God.

Yes, I believe that what kept us from losing our marbles is our Majestic God, who in the midst of it all has not left us, who worked under miraculous ways to protect us. At that time of uncertainty, He was our only comfort and refuge. And it is true that God uses instruments at work – He touches hearts of people to feel compassion and reach out to the needy, I have witnessed this thru the kindheartedness of my employer, Sir Ted and Ms. Marielle Fong, who have willingly extended their help to their employees. What really moved me was a day after the flood, Sir Ted made the effort to visit us who he knew were affected by the calamity. Their mere presence and sympathy was enough to keep me going.

Considerably, I am far luckier than others who have experienced greater distraught than what I did. I am thankful that I do not have to go to a disaster evacuation center and share everything with a 1,000++ other families; and even more thankful that we are not in cities such as Pasig which until now is submerged in waist-deep flood water, and word has it that condition will not get any better even after Christmas. Through it all, I know that each and everyone after surviving Typhoon Ondoy will be better individuals, that everything happens for a reason as it has been said, God takes away some things so you can make room for something far greater and important. And I believe in that, and if anything has been learned from Typhoon Ondoy is that we all must continue to live on for a brighter future awaits..

My family lives in the Camanava area (Camanava stands for Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela) – an area in Metro Manila that is usually flooded even in the summertime; even just with a little rain, flood water rises knee-deep high.

On that day, Sept 26, my husband and I left home at 7am to go to Divisoria (wholesale and flea market) despite the warnings, though not disturbing, that there is a storm. It wasn’t raining much at that time. We left our 5-year old son with the housekeeper and my brother at home.

We spent about 2 hours in Divisoria to finish conducting product research and sourcing for materials and drove home. Unfortunately, when we surveyed the area outside, we couldn’t get passed the front door of the building, because the whole area outside is submerged in thigh-deep water. We decided to pass time by staying in an internet-café, hoping that the rain would stop and the flood will eventually subside. I was not really worried that time because I thought it was just the usual storm, a typical scenario in the Philippines. By 3pm, the rain still wouldn’t stop, so we decided to try once again to drive home. With the help of the tricycle drivers, we were able to get out of the area by driving thru knee-deep water. When we got to Caloocan, traffic going to Malabon and Valenzuela was not moving; we decided to leave the car in a gasoline station in Caloocan and walked home. When we arrived in Malabon, there was no electricity; people were stranded in the flooded streets. No vehicles, even a 6-wheeler truck dared to cross the flooded-streets. Carina, a fellow Bomite, who lives in Malabon, sent me an SMS narrating that she had to walk thru chest-deep water to get home. I thought she was joking at that time, but when I saw the flood, it was true! Since I am about half-foot shorter than her, the water reached my shoulders.

Through phone calls from my brother, we were informed that the flood already reached our bedrooms (we live in bungalow house). By 7pm, he called once again that our entire house is already submerged in waist-deep water and they are now staying in the helper’s quarters, which is raised several feet above the main house.

When we arrived in our street, I felt like walking thru a ghost town. Everything was so still and quiet; most of the neighbors have relocated and moved out to seek safety on higher grounds. However, I need to get home for my 5-year old son, the main reason for risking the flooded streets.

We left the house at 9pm to look for a temporary shelter. I ruled out staying in the evacuation area (the basketball court) because it’s already filled with families who already took refuge there. We called the factory nearest us to let us stay in their office until the next day. My dad is a friend of the owner, so they let us in.

It was 7am the next day when my parents were able to reach us. We went to our house in Quezon City and it served as our evacuation area for one week until we were able to move back to our home.

We lost all of our properties and start anew but with God’s mercy, the family is complete. This experience brought the family closer because we see each other everyday instead of the usual once or twice a month get-together. For 1 week, we were able to stay in a 50sqm house with 10 family members. We even had unplanned family reunion because relatives visited us and brought “relief goods”.

We were lucky compared to many other Filipinos who are in a much worse situation than what we experienced, especially the poverty stricken Filipinos who do not have the means to recuperate after the calamity. After the typhoon, there is a lot of social recovery to be done – many are getting sick because of diseases brought about by the flood. Most families who are not as fortunate as we are are still in evacuation areas with supply of food and supplies almost running out. The Philippines is a poverty-stricken country, and calamities such as Typhoon Ondoy make the situation more problematic.

You can view photos of damage brought to our house by Ondoy here :
www.flickr.com/photos/43860355@N05/4035744093/
www.flickr.com/photos/43860355@N05/4035744089/in/photostream/

The weather in the Philippines has become unpredictable. So, when the rains started last September 25 and my boss asked me if I thought there was a typhoon, I said something to the effect of, “No, I think this is just the typical weather we’re having lately.”

When I checked PAGASA’s (Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services) website though, it turned out that yes, we did have a typhoon — a super typhoon no less, and a definite foot-in-the-mouth situation for me.

Things were fine though, since we’re pretty much enclosed and protected (in this case, clueless) in the warehouse where our office is located. The sound of loud raindrops on the roof is pretty commonplace. Come morning though, the continuous rain, flooding of neighboring offices and reported floods in various Metro areas were not.

Our night shift usually ends at 9 a.m., but when we were still at the office at 5 p.m., due to reports of flood and lack of transportation, our boredom slowly evolved to worry. Finally, the rain letting up and brownout drove us out of the office and started us on our way home.

It went downhill from there.

The lack of transportation forced me to walk home, which took me about 3 hours in varying levels of flood — ankle-deep, knee-deep; still, slightly flowing; clear, not so clear, suspicious to flat out dirty — all the while thinking, “Okay, not exactly how I pictured my day would go.”

Finally, I managed to hire a tricycle at a grocery store somewhat near our place. With the flood being high, the driver dropped me off at the end of the main street leading to ours, amidst a commotion of people either hesitating to walk in the flood or were riding airbeds and a boat (a small boat in the middle of the street!) for hire.

I figured, since many people were walking and I’ve already walked through flood, I’d give it a try. Before I knew it, the water got higher as I got further into the street — until I was almost wading in chest-deep flood. When I turned left into our street, it lowered a bit but was still crotch-high — all the way and even inside our apartment.

It was the first time I’ve seen a refrigerator, a pair of sofa chairs, and an LPG gas tank float, along with our shoes, plastic containers and whatever else we had on the first floor. When I got to the second floor, I found my roommate and a friend already stranded there. They too were stunned at how fast the water rose.

After cleaning up and changing clothes — or as close to it as I can manage — and returning near-frantic calls and texts from family and friends, I was more than ready to sleep.

The day, however, was not over.

I just managed to lie down when the barangay tanods (neighborhood watchmen) were announcing that things were about to get worse, since the storm was coming in an hour and a high tide in five. I thought then, “Huh, are they seriously saying that this wasn’t it?”

A slight panic hit us, and we almost took shelter in the nearest Barangay Hall. Then we realized, we have friends on the same street. They live on the second floor, so they’ve pretty much been untouched by the flood. The two of them were very kind to let us take shelter in their apartment for two nights and two days until the flood subsided.

That Sunday afternoon, the whole of Monday and the better part of Tuesday morning, we cleaned up our apartment, threw away what cannot be used anymore and scrubbed everything clean. By the end, we were exhausted but thankfully unscathed.

After managing to turn our TV on, all our grumbling during that holed-up-in-an-apartment-without-electricity-and-major-apartment-clean-up-after-the-flood weekend was forgotten. Faced with continuous news coverage of devastated areas, we realized that we were among the lucky ones and we absolutely had no right to complain. We were alive, dry and were able to eat and sleep — unlike many who faced hunger, fear, homelessness and even death.

There are a few remarkable experiences in a person’s life, and this is one in mine. I was not gravely affected, but the amount of suffering and devastation I saw on television is enough for me to remember this disaster — this super typhoon named “Ondoy.”

The amount of love, heroism and resilience I saw in my countrymen gave me hope and made me proud to be a Filipino. We continually prove that no matter what hits us, we are still a nation of resilient, God-fearing, kind and loving people. By God’s grace and mercy, we will continue to rise from this situation and hopefully, learn and make whatever changes we need to prevent this from happening again.

I am one of the lucky ones who have not experienced the harrowing damage caused by Ondoy. Maybe it’s pure luck or maybe God spared us.

At 9 am in the morning on that day, I was prepping for a wedding (!), and that time, the rain was heavy but everything was still ok. I went to the office to meet my boss and colleagues for the wedding in Tagaytay, a two-hour drive from Manila.

At 10:30 am, I received a text from an officemate that he couldn’t go out as the streets in his area were heavily flooded. Another one texted me and said that all major highways are flooded and they’re stuck somewhere and couldn’t move.

Ted was somewhere driving around Manila trying to avoid heavily-flooded areas. At 12 noon, I know that we couldn’t make it to the wedding. Most of us were stuck at our office, and have no idea that Metro Manila is now heavily flooded, with cars, buses, garbage etc… floating all around. That time, I was only thinking of the wedding that we would surely miss.

I went home at around 8 pm, and I didn’t even wade, walk or swim thru the flood. After reassuring my family (who probably saw what’s happening on TV), I watched the news and it was only that time that it totally hit me -- Manila and neighboring cities have suffered the worst flood in 40 years.

I tried to contact my colleagues and friends, to make sure that they’re ok, or at least, alive (thank God all were alive and safe). Monday, after the flood, we traveled to our colleagues’ homes to see if they’re ok. It was heart-wrenching to see the aftermath of the disaster that Ondoy brought. Whole villages were submerged, cars were abandoned, and there’s that stinky smell pervading the worst-hit areas

I couldn’t even process and was amazed by the stories of people I know – 16 hours on the highway, walking/swimming thru chest deep flood for hours. But most of all, I was touched by the heroism of thousands of people, sacrificing their properties to save lives, and to some, saving lives at the cost of their own.

I have a distant cousin who saved at least twenty people (Carlos was a very good swimmer) by making sure that they’re perched on a sturdy, big tree. Sadly, he was struck by a live wire and died. There are a lot of nameless faces and heroes like him. Were it not for them, more people have died. As of today, relief operations are still ongoing – and if there’s one thing that I am proud of as a Filipino – we are resilient, and we always recover.

I was to attend an officemate's wedding the day of September 26th, not expecting that the continuous rain the night before has started to flood our area. I'm still determined to attend the wedding, left the boarding house at pass 9:00 a.m. The water on our street was ankle deep, still I tried but when I reached the main street, it's already waist deep. I decided I'm not going to get to where I'm going with the height of water on the main street, so I just went back to the boarding house and texted my officemate about the situation.

Around 11:00 a.m., the water started to rise, now it's knee-deep and was inside the units on the first floor, we we're lucky our unit is on the second floor. Then past noon, I started receiving texts messages from my family who lives in our house in Valenzuela. The water on the street there is rising fast, our house was built higher than the street, but even then the water was able to reach inside the house, now knee-deep; outside on the street was almost 5 feet. I started to get worried, I'm far away from them, I cannot do anything and there's no way I can get there. I become even more worried at around 7:00 p.m. as I received a text from my brother who also lives in a boarding house in Pasig. They were already on the second floor because the water there already filled up the first floor of the house. All I can do is pray, as I heard several news on the radio that Pasig is one of the most affected area.

Sunday came, September 27, my family in Valenzuela texted that the water already subsided, but we haven't received any text from my brother in Pasig. My cellphone is already low in battery and there's still no electricity to charge it. I kept my ears on the battery-powered radio the whole night trying to get at least some information on the area, it's stressful to hear news of people still stranded on top of their houses without any food, people missing, washed out in the flood, etc. I'm trying to keep myself cool, praying that my brother is safe and that the only reason he's not texting is that he's cellphone went off.

Monday came, September 28. There's still water on the main street but only above the knee, the electricity was back in our apartment, and I was able to charge my cellphone. Called my brother, the cellphone is still off. I called my family, my brother already texted them, the water in their area is still high but what matters most is that he's safe. Knowing that all your family is safe, was the best gift I received on that day — yes, it's my birthday.

I usually set aside money to celebrate my birthday by treating myself, family, and friends. But with disaster caused by Ondoy, I felt guilty to enjoy and celebrate the day just what I used to. So I decided, it's time to give something back for keeping my family safe. I texted a friend who's organization is doing relief operations and ask if I can donate money and my time to volunteer. By 3:00 p.m., we're all heading to their relief operation in Cainta, Rizal. Seating on piles of relief goods, I had the gruesome view of Ondoy's aftermath — wrecked houses, thick layer of mud on the streets, overturned cars, not to mention the foul smell. We distributed relief goods in two areas, people patiently lined up to get goods for their families. More than food, it was clean drinking water that people asked for, especially for families with children.

We're done by 11:00 p.m. and headed back to Robinson's Galleria. Grab some dinner at Ministop with my friend and his girlfriend, talked about the experience, and said our goodbyes. On my way home I texted my friend for having me celebrate my birthday meaningfully. I was also able to talk to my brother on the cellphone that night. I can say, what I've experienced and have done is so little compared to others, but then all help, no matter how small if put together can save lives and bring hope to others.

ahren- Just Learn!!!

It has been a great morning for me!

Cold water, freshly made food, but a harsh weather which i didn't eventually would realize!

Making my way through the office was never that hard asusual. Walking through a happy street where people are making money early that morning. I was wet all over, my shoes are mushy and my hair are too sticky so decidedto wash it out and take my smelly shoes off and take some slippers for a change! Opening my PC and logging my personal settings was my first job every now and then. it was a daily routine since i started working (Like everyone else in the company). Getting my MS Outlook warmed-up and reading messages in the box.

There is a scheduled delivery @ the 11th hour in the morning that day so we are rushing the packaging for the items. but unfortunately we didn't make it on time so we decided to finishthe whole bulk-in for the delivery the following monday.

The rain was beginning to get heavy and some Chatmis were roaming the office- "baha na sa labas gang tuhod nah, sa Mantrade naman lagpas tao na!" but we continue to work still just to finish the items subject for delivery." We then decided to order na lang for oue lunch meal.- sa Tinago! After a few minutes spending in eating, i decided to just finish my chores and go home.

Time ticked @12:30 PM and we decided to go home. we were all shocked with what we saw, the water was above the knee already and people are starting to walk because vehicles would get their machines drowned if they let there 4-wheeled manuevers pass thru the unexpected flood. and we decidded to walk with our feet.

after a few minutes of walk, a truck came and let us rode at the back of the huge truck (malaki tlagah!). when we are riding the truck, i saw this cute guy beside Ms. Carina, our finance and operations, and i started to talk to him kiddin'ly.

ahren: Kuya anung name muh?

Kuya: (deadma lang habang tumingin sa kin- malagkit???? hahaha)

ahren: tga san kah?

Kuya: (deadma padin habang tumingin ulit- mas malagkit??? hahaha)

ahren: deadma kah wah... tseh.... hahaha

It was a fun experienc talking to a deaf cute guy would always like to do is to make you feel kilig hahaha (Lantod!)...


Then the truck stopped and enters a warehouse so we decided to jumped off the truck nah and walk again... then i saw the cute guy again and he was signing that, if they could gat a hatch in our umbrellas, xmpweh nmn i called them and make them comfort... hahaha(Landi tlagah)


(Conversation under the rain)

AHREN: sungit muh wah....

KUYA: hindi po... kahiya kasi... ako na mgadala ng payong!

AHREN:hindi ok lang... anung name muh??

KUYA: Justine!

AHREN:ah tlagah... tgasn kah??

KUYA: cavite... lapit noh..

(Laughing- both of us)

MAM Cai:(EPAL)uy nilalamig daw ahren peramin muh nmn kuya ng jacket!

KUYA: etoh woh! (Naghuhubad)

AHREN: (super sight) ayyy... wag nah noh ok lang...

and the conversation continues until we arrived at Alphaland Southgate mall. we took- part (how sad!) and we walked along a narrow path of the mall just to ride the MRT.

at the MRT we saw them din and i decided to get the number of the guy...

AHREN: kuya ingatz hah.... anung no. muh???

KUYA: (Binigay 'gad) 09*********- justine hah...

and they decide to ride the MRT nah going to North ave (Tga cavite xah di bah??? dapat sa kabila- anyweiz wafackelz , cute nmn xah weh...)

Then we make our way to monumento nah... very crowded, smells stinks because of the rain-dried shirts with different perspiration level... hehe

@ monumento, Ms. CAi and i decided to ride a jeepney roving until the COsMOs factory. we were very very very very shocked with what happened! people do have oil in their feet, face, clothes, etc.- people who tried to pass the flooded bridge at BBB, the flood shivers above every person pssing it!!! it was very disastrous!! as In!!!

so we head to malabon where ms. cai lives. living at malabon during peek season is not that hard- pag wlang baha i suppose! nanunuot ung amoy ksi sa balat at sa mga damit koh... sarap cgurong tumira dun... hehe

Sunday Morning i decided to go home not knowing hat will happen next!

Monumento was not that harsh nah..unlike the day before ! but it left a huge mark on the streets and even to the faces of the people who lived there.

i never imagined that i would walk that far (monumneto to meycauayan) which i dont usually do... no choice kasi....

arriving at my grandmother's house in Bancal, Meyucauayan Bulacan naabutan koh padin ang marka on the disaster happened in the country. i just ate and decided to visit our house @ marilao, bulacan which i knew- during the typhoon- that the only thing left undamaged is our roof itself.

Tumbled cabinets
cracked plates, saucers, mugs, etc.
muddy floor, clothes and walls
snakes and eels
water all over- black
bad smell
unuseful appliances

ALL was GONE! BACK 2 ZERO! this are the things which crapped my mind that time!!!

we don't know were to start... we dont know how to start... we dont know if we could do it all over again....

i saw a Book Entitled BOOK OF ANSWERS at our neighbors house and deicded to ask the book!!!

Question: " are we going to be ok after all of this-all waht happened??? "

the answer of the book is

"LAUGH ABOUT IT!"


all thoughts come into my mind, we can make this work again! we make it the first time when we were starting why NOT NOW!!!

just Faith- All of these are NOTHING ompared to what jesus did for the whole world!!

these are just challenges!!! JUST CHALLENGES!!!!

Challenges----> answer-----> faith and perserverance!


we could start a better ONE thru this way!!! JUST LEARN!!!

====================================================================