Rice fields in Camarines Sur remained flooded on Friday, nearly a week after Typhoon Rolly lashed through the Bicol region on Nov. 1, 2020. (File photo by NIÑO JESUS ORBETA / Philippine Daily Inquirer)
MANILA, Philippines — Exactly seven years ago, Tacloban, the capital of Leyte, and the rest of Eastern Visayas bore the brunt of Super Typhoon Yolanda, said to be the strongest cyclone ever to make landfall.
Aid from both local and international sources poured in to help Tacloban get back on its feet again.
Now the people of Tacloban have decided it’s their time to help and pay the kindness forward.
Early Sunday morning, over 2,000 cyclists participated in the Yolanda Commemorative Ride at the Tacloban Astrodome, a fundraising event for the benefit of people in the Bicol Region, which was badly hit by Super Typhoon Rolly.
They have so far collected donations worth over P15 million in cash and in kind.
Tacloban officials organized the event in partnership with government agencies led by the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) and several groups like the Tacloban SK Federation and the Region 8 Bicycle Advocacy Community.
“Waraynons find joy in helping others and today is another celebration of kindness, gratitude, and the resiliency of Filipinos. We want to share our blessings and to pay it forward to our fellow Filipinos,” House Majority Floor Leader Martin Romualdez, who helped organize the event, said.
“We know exactly what the evacuees in Bicol are going through now,” he added.
According to Romualdez, one lesson that Bicolanos can get from the people of Tacloban is that they never stopped the process of recovery from the damage wrought by Yolanda
“Despite the numerous challenges we face in our everyday lives, we always remain resilient to stay in the game. We do not allow difficulties to break us, that is the key behind our recovery,” he said.
“We have faced and survived one of the strongest typhoons ever recorded in history. We have risen from this devastating experience and we have shown to the rest of the world what we are capable of recovering because of our resiliency. Let us continue in our journey towards building back a better and more resilient community,” he added.
Meanwhile, Rep. Yedda Marie Romualdez of the Tingog party-list thanked the people who participated in the fundraising event.
“It is through our solidarity as a region and as a community that we are able to look back into this day with strength and hope. Together we rise as people with resiliency and fortitude that we have gained from this experience,” she said.
Though not as strong as Yolanda, which hammered Tacloban with wind speeds of 315 kph, Rolly also brought considerably strong winds reaching over 220 kph.
Yolanda’s death total was at 6,340, while over 1,771 are still missing and feared dead. Damage to infrastructure and agriculture was estimated at P95 billion.
In comparison, the latest data from the Philippine National Police places the death toll of Rolly at 25, of which 21 were recorded in Bicol.
According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, Rolly’s damage to infrastructure and agriculture is at P11 billion as of Thursday.
The Department of Public Works and Highways said that P5.76 billion of this was infrastructure damage.
According to local and national officials, the damage was widespread, extending beyond coastal communities, and lahar flow from Mount Mayon caused by heavy rainfall devastated communities in Albay.
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