Typhoon Odette toppled trees and lamposts rendering most roads impassable. CDN Digital photo | Brian J. Ochoa [FILE PHOTO]
CEBU CITY, Philippines — As Cebuanos observe the first anniversary of Super Typhoon Odette today, Dec. 16, 2022, some recall the struggles they experienced at the height of the howler’s rage and the ‘silver linings’ they learned from the calamity.
Katrena Cortes, 26, from Mactan, Cebu, said that Super Typhoon Odette was the “strongest” and most frightening typhoon she has ever experienced in her life.
“I can still recall the whistle of the strong wind going in and out of our windows and door sill. The memory that I can never forget about Odette would be the long days and nights without water and electricity,” she told CDN Digital.
The experience, she said, brought her back to the old days when her grandparents would spend nights with their apos sharing bedtime stories about their childhood.
Cortes also recalled her experience of going to her sister-in-law’s house to manually pump water from a well, days after Super Typhoon Odette disrupted the power and water supply in Central Visayas.
“The struggle of transportation when you have to report to work, especially working in a hospital, as we are still amid the pandemic,” she added.
She noted that her neighbors became her support system and how these experiences taught her to be kind and loving to them.
“I have learned that life is, indeed, short and unpredictable, so time with family is essential. Also, I’ve learned to never be too complacent when it comes to weather warnings and reports,” she added.
The calamity that was Odette brought nations together to help the Philippines get back on its feet. The Taiwanese government donated over 6,300 kilograms of relief goods for Odette-stricken areas in Central Visayas. | Photos from DSWD-7 [FILE PHOTO]
Clarenz Jay Mendoza, from Cebu City, recalled the hardships he encountered in trying to go back to his home province in Samar, days after Odette rendered almost everything useless.
Clarenz Jay Mendoza (wearing cap and glasses) poses for a groufie with the friends he met at the airport.| contributed photo
From the struggles he endured in booking a flight, to several delayed flights and staying for hours at the airport, these circumstances he said molded him to become a better, stronger person.
“But at least, there are two good things that I could still be grateful for, for those unenviable circumstances. One is I was able to go home to my province safely. And two, I got to meet new friends who also came from our province,” he said. /rcg
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