These were the results of the very powerful winds brought by typhoon Kristine in Calatagan and Sto. Tomas City, Batangas. Many portions of the province were inundated by chest-deep floods and plagued by 48-hour to 72-hour brownouts.
Kristine horrifies folk; Sto. Tomas zero casualty–PNP
TYPHOON Kristine’s effects on Batangas and Laguna residents were so horrifying as a number of them still can’t believe they would experience such a horrific catastrophe.
From Binan City, Laguna, local resident Gina Maranan took two days in driving out the mud brought by raging floods and that entered their house in Brgy. San Vicente.
“Akala ko kaya ng tatlong oras, inabot kami ng dalawang araw sa paglilinis,” the woman said.
Typhoon Kristine, international name Trami, barrelled through Bicol and Southern Tagalog on the afternoon of Oct. 24.
Many thought the typhoon would only lash the Bicol region as 24-hour before its fierceness was felt, many parts of Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur and Albay were already experiencing massive rains and severe flooding.
With winds of 140 kilometers per hour, the rains it poured were equivalent to three months of rain, eclipsing the havoc brought by past deadly typhoons Ondoy (2008), Glenda (2014), Reming (2006) and Odette (2021).
It caused 48-hour to 72-hour brownouts in Talisay, the most severely affected with 21 people buried alive by raging mudslides, and nearby Laurel, Tanauan, Malvar, Agoncillo, Lipa, Calatagan and Bauan.
The typhoon left with over a hundred fatalities and displaced over two million residents in Region 4A, Bicol and 10 other regions.
In Sto. Tomas City, Batangas, businessman Rico Opena said a number of their plants were razed to the ground caused by very powerful winds of the typhoon. Most of their plants that have buyers already were damaged.
Michael Cornejo, chief of security of Camella Frontera in Brgy. San Vicente, Sto. Tomas, said inside phase one of the subdivision, the floodwaters reached chest-high.
The main road in Sto. Tomas leading to other barangays was inundated with neck-high floodwater, causing hundreds of vehicles to conk out and uprooting hundreds of trees.
Another property owner in Batangas said he never imagined the typhoon would be that destructive.
“Our damage was so bad; roof and walls uprooted,” the property owner told the Journal.
Police Lt. Col. Apolinario Lunar, Sto. Tomas City police chief, said they were thankful despite the massive rains, the city experienced zero casualty.
“Zero casualty po at maaga pa nag-implement na ng pre-evacuation ang local government unit, PNP at mga barangay. Madami lang talaga ulan kaya madami binaha na barangay.
Baka may mga nasira na kagamitan sa ibang bahay na napasok ng tubig,” Lunar explained.
He assured the damages brought by the typhoon will not destruct the police from their job as Sto. Tomas is considered very safe because no serious crimes, like murder, very rarely occur in the city.
Theft is the most common crime committed in the city. Based on records, there were eight theft incidents in July, five in August and four in September.
What is more surprising is most of the suspects are workers who steal anything valuable in their company.
“Copper wires are most commonly stolen because it’s easy to sell for P700 to P750 per kilo,” the police chief said.
Lunar and his team immediately conducted patrol all over the city less than 12 hours after the typhoon subsided.
They went to the establishments inundated by floods like banks, malls and markets to see to it that criminals will not take advantage. By ED VELASCO
