It's time for another tale of "Filipino Resilience." This episode of "Filipino Resilience" is brought to you by neighborly kindness and good governance. A massive fire in Tondo destroyed 1,000 houses leaving 5,000 individuals and 2,000 families suddenly homeless. Here is a picture of the destruction.
But don't feel bad for these people. They are resilient. Let's take a look at how resilient they are.
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| https://mb.com.ph/2024/11/25/from-rubble-to-resilience-isla-puting-bato-fire-victims-fight-to-rebuild-their-lives |
Despite losing everything in a massive fire that tore through Isla Puting Bato, the survivors remain determined to rise from the ashes and rebuild their homes and hope.
Isla Puting Bato is crowded community in Tondo, Manila, where houses were constructed from light, highly flammable materials, which allowed the flames to spread rapidly, triggering the highest fire alert level.
Firefighters battled the blaze for six hours, leaving 1,000 houses in ashes and over 5,000 residents, or approximately 2,000 families, homeless.
The blaze reached Task Force Charlie and by the time it was contained, much of the community had been reduced to ash.
In the aftermath of the disaster, survivors have been left to cope with the physical and emotional toll of the fire.
Many have lost everything—homes, personal belongings, and the means to rebuild their lives.
The fire victims have been temporarily evacuated to the Delpan Sports Complex, where they are being housed in cramped conditions, without adequate privacy or basic resources.
For many, the simplest tasks—bathing, dressing, eating—have become overwhelming challenges in the face of scarce resources and limited facilities at the evacuation center.
The residents of Isla Puting Bato, who once lived in close-knit, informal communities, have now found themselves in a temporary shelter with little more than the clothes on their backs. Families have been forced to adapt to a new way of life—one of uncertainty and hardship.
Collectively these 5,000 people are now struggling to complete the simplest of tasks such as bathing and eating because of the scarce resources and limited facilities at the evacuation center. Needless to say with 5,000 people social services are pressed to the breaking point.
However, as the article says, "the survivors remain determined to rise from the ashes and rebuild their homes and hope." These people have also lost all material possessions including "the means to rebuild their lives" but what does that matter when you have hope?
As long as they have hope the dream to rebuild houses which are "constructed from light, highly flammable materials, which allowed the flames to spread rapidly, triggering the highest fire alert level" remains alive.
Being resilient does not mean you are alone. Thankfully this is a tight-knit community who looks out for each other.
Nida, 38, single mother of two, said she left her children inside their house when she went to a nearby market to buy food.
She said she was not able to return to her house because the fire department did not allow her.
Just when she thought her children were trapped inside their burning house, she found them with her neighbors.
She said she was not able to save anything except the clothes they were wearing at the time.
With no homes to return to, many are reliant on donations from local charities, government agencies, and generous citizens to meet their basic needs.
Thank goodness a neighbor noticed Nida's two young children were home alone and saved them from the conflagration.
Along with neighborly kindness comes the paternal hand of the government.
With no homes to return to, many are reliant on donations from local charities, government agencies, and generous citizens to meet their basic needs.
In the wake of the tragedy, the local government has pledged to assist the displaced families of Isla Puting Bato with both immediate relief and long-term recovery plans.
According to local officials, hot meals are being regularly provided to the affected families, while efforts are underway to provide clothes and financial assistance.
The government has announced plans to build more sustainable housing for the victims, with priority given to those who lost their homes in the fire.
More discussions are being held with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to facilitate the rebuilding of homes, as well as the provision of health services, livelihood programs, and psychosocial support for those affected.
As the survivors of Isla Puting Bato begin the slow process of rebuilding their lives, the question remains: How do people who have so little, recover from losing everything?
Despite repeated fire over the years, the community's resilience will undoubtedly play a key role in their recovery, but the support of the government, as well as ongoing aid from local citizens and organizations, will be crucial in helping these families regain a sense of stability and hope.
This Christmas, despite everything they lost, the residents of Isla Puting Bato stand united in their unwavering determination to move forward, no matter the odds.
The government says they will help these people rebuild "more sustainable housing" "with priority given to those who lost their homes in the fire." I am sure that means 5,000 people will be given priority.
There have been repeated fires over the years no doubt due to all the house being "constructed from light, highly flammable materials." In 2012 the government forbade residents from rebuilding.
A scuffle broke out on Thursday on Isla Puting Bato in Tondo, Manila, between the victims of Friday’s fire and teams from the Philippine Ports Authority after the latter barred the residents from rebuilding their homes on government-owned property.
The May 11 fire displaced more than 5,000 people at the slum community, which falls under PPA’s jurisdiction. They were briefly given shelter at the Del Pan sports complex and were told by City Hall about a relocation site awaiting them in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.
But some residents left the gym on Thursday and started bringing construction materials to Isla Puting Bato to rebuild their homes—only to see the barriers put up by the PPA to keep them out of the site.
About 50 people breached the fences Thursday. Some were pushed back by PPA security guards but others got through and went on to salvage anything useful from the ruins.
In an interview, Ricardo de Guzman, chief of staff of Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim, said the PPA had sought City Hall’s help in preventing the residents from returning to the site, citing “safety issues.”
The agency was concerned that PPA facilities “not designed for residential uses” might end up being occupied, De Guzman said.
The PPA also noted that, lacking a sewerage system, the informal settlers also “significantly contribute to the pollution in Manila Bay.”
De Guzman said the decision to keep the fire victims out was PPA’s call. “We can only appeal to the National Housing Authority for immediate relocation of the victims,” he said.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/195339/victims-of-tondo-fire-barred-from-rebuilding
But it appears this time the government will assist these people in rebuilding their homes on government property with no sewage systems so they can continue to pollute Manila Bay.
Perhaps others will be relocated. This also happened after the 2012 fire.
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| https://www.rappler.com/video/documentaries/16036-danger-zone/ |
“We had no choice,” said Evelyn Dagotgot, one of the survivors of a fire in Isla Puting Bato that dislocated 5,000 Tondo residents last May.
Evelyn’s destroyed home in Manila was on the breakwater in a “danger zone,” and her family was prohibited from returning to rebuild. Against their better judgment, they accepted the National Housing Authority’s (NHA) relocation offer. They were even shown the home beforehand.
“The site they showed us was not the actual site where we were relocated,” said Evelyn in Filipino. Instead, they ended up in faraway Barangay San Jose, Rodriguez (formerly Montalban), Rizal.
“We wondered why it was next to a river,” said Evelyn.
Several months later, Evelyn was awoken by her neighbor pounding on her door. Unknown to Evelyn, the Wawa dam had overflowed from the Habagat rains.
“There was no no advance warning, not even by megaphone. If our neighbor had not woken us up, we would have had no idea what was going on.” said Evelyn.
“My husband would have no family to return to if we were swept away by the flood,” said Evelyn. “That’s how sad it could have been.”
Rodriguez lies in a geo-hazard zone. If a 7-9-magnitude earthquake hits, all buildings in the vicinity are expected to collapse. When asked why the NHA selected the site to resettle informal settlers, a staff member of the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office noted that the last geo-hazard study was conducted in 2002.
It is not entirely clear who is to blame for selecting a geo-hazard zone as the destination for up to 70,000 resettled informal settlers.
Rodriguez municipal administrator Pascual de Guzman described the role that the municipality plays in the relocation process. “The local government has nothing to do with the choice of relocatees, or with the choice of the developer, the choice of site, it is all the national government.”
Whether these resilient Filipinos are relocated to a dangerous flood zone or a geo-hazard zone or rebuild their homes in a breakwater danger zone with the help of the government one thing is certain. They have hope and the "unwavering determination to move forward, no matter the odds."
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