Iligan rises from the floods
ILIGAN CITY—When relentless rains brought by Tropical Storm “Basyang” (international name: Penha) triggered widespread flooding in this city on Feb. 6, local fashion designer Gloria Tingas watched in horror as her shop, Glorious Fashion, was submerged in mud-thick water.
Inside were her creations, including a dream wedding gown for a bride who was scheduled to walk down the aisle at 1 p.m. on Feb. 7.
Upon checking the damage the flood wrought on her shop, Gloria was heartbroken. The gown was soaked, covered in silt, and seemingly ruined.
With only hours left, and no power or clean water, Gloria summoned her resolve not to give up. She spent hours washing the gown by hand, battling the thick, stubborn mud. She worked meticulously, scrubbing and drying the delicate fabric in hopes of making it in time for the ceremony.
When asked later, a tearful Gloria couldn’t remember the bride’s name; her shop records and receipts had been soaked in floodwater. All she knew was that the couple worked at the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.
Rea May Sabalbaro of Barangay Fuentes and Jun Wendelle Apog of Barangay Suarez were spared from the floods but the storm still found its way into their wedding.
Many in the entourage and sponsors could not make it as they were affected by the floods. The general atmosphere after the floods was a pale one, with roads going into the city jammed by debris.
The tragedy had not prevented Rea and Jun from pushing through with the wedding, so they went to the cathedral for the mandatory prewedding confession and interview with the officiating priest.
Rea also contacted Gloria and the wedding coordinator. “I was worried when they were not replying to my messages. I was stressed thinking our wedding may not happen because of the floods,” Rea recalled.
On the morning of her wedding day, while Rea was being prepped up for the ceremony, she noticed that there was an alternate gown being brought to her room. “Why would I be asked to choose again? They know what (gown) I chose,” she further recounted.
It was then that she knew what happened to Gloria’s shop and the gown of her dreams.
Sheer defiance
Through sheer defiance of the odds, Gloria was able to make Feb. 7, a glorious one for Rea and Jun.
Iligan City is summoning the same spirit as it rises from the devastation of Basyang.
The disaster had freshened the people’s memories of the 2011 catastrophe due to the weak but rain-heavy Typhoon “Sendong” (Washi).
Based on official assessment, Basyang affected 16,355 families with 750 families displaced and currently sheltered in evacuation centers. Five people also died from drowning.
About 1,818 houses were damaged, two bridges along the national highway swept away by raging waters, creating economic disruptions.
Up to P94.56 million in public infrastructure was damaged by the floods, P42.3 million in crops and livestock, and P47.3 million in assets owned by micro, small and medium-scale enterprises.
About a week after the floods, mud is still bugging interior urban villages and communities. Iligan City Mayor Frederick Siao expressed gratitude to local government units for assisting in the debris clearing effort.
The mayor also thanked Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon for acting swiftly to help the city recover from the devastation.
Dizon had ordered the immediate procurement of services for dredging the Tubod River and the construction of replacement bridges in Abuno village.
As the city moves forward, its greatest challenge is exorcising the ghost of Sendong that still haunts it with Basyang’s onslaught.
