Previous Story
Heavy rain in paradise
|
Posted on Aug 11 2000
The Issue: Lack of planning for heavy rain that’s been around since the dawn of man in these isles.
Our View: Chaotic panic is unnecessary if we get our acts together on typhoon season torrential rain.
Torrential rain that flood these isles during the typhoon season has been around since the dawn of man in these isles.
But for all the benefits of this traditional experience in inclement weather, we still run around headless trying to figure out how to deal with flood in low-lying areas.
It’s unimaginable how, after 22 years of planning and capital project implementation, we still haven’t been able to emplace drainage systems in flood-prone areas. Or if we did, we just don’t see the importance of maintaining them to ensure they work during heavy rain.
A barrage of phone calls inundate radio morning shows from parents wanting to know if class would be held under unusually heavy rain. There are schools with drainage systems however uselessly clogged due to lack of maintenance.
This brings into question whose job is it to maintain drainage systems: Department of Public Works or the Public School System or both. Certainly, DPW stretches manpower to clean clogged drainage systems throughout residential and commercial areas. That there’s complete forewarning of an impending rainstorm is sufficient reason for DPW’s crew to clear clogged drainage systems throughout our schools. It’s obvious they took things for granted once again.
The irony of this rainy day panic is the full knowledge that the typhoon season descends in these isles at this time of the year, every year. Yet, we were complacent in preparing for the worse case scenario. It confirms our habitual attitude of planning by over planning for eventualities. If experience is the mother of knowledge, then it is obvious that it hasn’t descended in these isles.
We still stick to old paradigms of planning by eventualities. It need not be this way if only we employ some sense of planning for events, including the annual typhoon season.
Can we get our acts together to avoid future recurrence of even such a simple issue as to hold or not to hold classes? Si Yuus Maase`!
