Isla Puting Bato Fire Survivors Are VERY Resilient

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.

In the Western World if your house burns down you find a temporary place to stay while you sort out the insurance and what not. That's not what these 5,000 people will be doing. Instead, just a month before Christmas, they are suddenly homeless and destitute. Thousands have been crammed into emergency evacuation centers as they contemplate their futures.

But don't feel bad for these people. They are resilient. Let's take a look at how resilient they are. 

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. 

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."

This Filipino is VERY Resilient

Everyone hears about how resilient Filipinos are. This man embodies that spirit. 

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/content/925796/viral-kakanin-vendor-braves-kristine-floods-to-feed-family/story/

During tropical cyclone Kristine's heavy downpour in October, a vendor went viral for walking through massive floods and winds while carrying his container of kakanin.

"Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho" discovered that this man, Randy, lives in Calamba, Laguna, and that he decided to brave the storm to earn an income to feed his family.

["All I could think of was my family not having anything to eat. That's why I forced myself to go out into the streets to sell"]

Randy said that he knew a storm was coming that day; he seized the opportunity because sales were strong during storms.

His wife, Jovimee, however, told him to stay at home because of the bad weather, but Randy was persistent.

While selling kakanin during the storm, Randy's metal container began to break, and he himself was nearly swept away by the strong winds.

Randy held onto an iron fence as onlookers shouted, unaware of how far he'd walked through the flood. Unable to walk in slippers, he went barefoot. 

While he was away, Jovimee feared for her husband.

["I didn't receive an update from him the whole day. I was afraid metal sheets might fly around."]

Although Randy was able to sell all his kakanin, the storm got stronger on his way home.

["The storm was really strong! I got scared and had to stop for a moment to hold on to the area near the gutter"]

Randy came across more trouble when he fell into a canal in Barangay Halang, Calamba.

["I didn't know there was an open canal there. I just fell right in!"]

["I was scared I'd get swept underneath. Out of fear, I quickly climbed out and kept walking. All I could think about was getting home, knowing my family was waiting for me. They might have nothing to eat, especially in a storm. I was worried that something might happen to them."]

When he finally got home, Jovimee thanked the Lord that nothing dangerous happened to her husband.

So, Randy, knowing there was a fierce storm coming decided to go out and hawk his kakanin. He says sales are strong during storms. Now, why is that? Why are people buying food from street vendors during storms? Because they can't go out so they wait for some hapless street vendor amble along selling stuff?

Then he falls into a gutter. Presumably he is walking his normal route, BAREFOOT, and did not realize there was an open canal in his path. Did he forget? But he climbed out safe and sound and kept walking home. 

You see, Randy is resilient. 

Randy's perseverance

Randy leaves his home at 5 a.m. daily to sell puto, sapin-sapin, and kutsinta. He then commutes to Los Banos, Laguna, where he sells these kakanin.

Randy's daily earnings vary, with P1,500 being the largest amount. He then sends money to the business owner, and brings home P500 to P600 for his family.

["We use the money for food, electricity, water, and school expenses. It's never enough because there are always unexpected school costs.]

["I don't think about the exhaustion. I just want to put my kids through school. As long as I can work, I'll keep going because I don't want them to end up like me."]

Randy shared that he chose to live in Calamba and work in the south to search for his mother.

Raised in Pangasinan, Randy didn't finish school and started selling binatog with his uncle. Later, his grandmother told him he wasn't a blood relative and that his real mother was from Calamba.

["When the woman left, she didn't give a name. They just gave me away, like bread.]

His father figure, Tatay Andoy, said it was difficult to reveal this to Randy after raising him. "Para sa akin talaga, tunay na anak ko na siya."

["To me, he was like my own child."]

Randy learned no new details about his mother from Tatay Andoy but remains grateful to the family who raised him. At 17, he began supporting himself by selling kakanin in Laguna while continuing his search for his mother.

Not only is Randy selling food to provide for his family but he is also looking for his mother. As if one day she will magically show up even though he has no idea who she is or what she looks like. Poor Randy was raised by a grandmother who was not his grandmother. She was merely an old woman to whom Randy was given to raise. 

But there is hope she might be found because a random lady took a video of Randy trudging barefoot through the storm.  

The viral video

When Randy was on the way home after selling kakanin during Typhoon Kristine, a woman named Shamillae took a video of him. 

She said she recorded it after they were asked to leave a coffee shop due to rising floodwaters. Unaware he was being filmed, Randy kept walking through Barangay Halang.

Jovimee watched the video when a neighbor showed it to her.

["I cried because I didn't realize the extent of what he went through just to be able to come home."]

Following this, several people were able to donate rice for Randy. When he and Shamillae met, she also offered him cash.

The barangay staff and Calamba City's local government provided Randy with sacks of rice, groceries, and other essentials, along with a scholarship for his child.

Randy also hopes the viral video will be a way for him to meet his mother.

["I hope someone can help me find my real parents. I want to meet them because I have a lot of questions about why they did what they did."]

Because of the video much attention was given to Randy's plight. People donated money and the barangay gave him "sacks of rice, groceries, and other essentials, along with a scholarship for his child." 

Well, good for him. His resilience has paid off because it was all caught on video.

But how many more people in this same situation have not been caught on video? How many more Filipinos are out walking around barefoot doing every thing they can to provide for their family? 

Hopefully they stay resilient. Continue on walking that barefoot path selling food or other wares and maybe, just maybe, strangers, or even the barangay who are supposed to offer help to the poor, will lend a helping hand. 

Let's hear it for Randy. Let's hear it for Filipino resiliency.

Why Are Foreigners Doing the Job of the Government?

Stories about foreigners and foreign NGOs setting up shop in the Philippines on a quest to eradicate poverty are numerous. But why is this even necessary? Are there foreigners investing in eradicating poverty in Compton or Harlem or the south side of Chicago? Plenty of local and national organisations take care of the poor in those cities. So why is the Philippines relying on foreigners to pick them up instead of doing it themselves? Take this man for instance:

https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/12/30/australian-natl-builds-community-center-in-one-of-bicols-poorest-barangays/

With that headline one might think he's doing a nice thing helping out poor people. But much more is going on. Australian Bob Murray is the head of the Muravah Foundation. Here are some of their objectives and projects:

The Muravah Foundation was initially established in the slums in Manilla, Philippines to give opportunity to under-privileged kids to complete a university degree. Core to our philosophy is that we support ALL the children in each family. This complete family then has a chance in the future to move out of poverty permanently. 

This philosophy has grown to include the adoption of whole communities, by investing in education, health, environment, improved farming methods, irrigation and small business loans. We've established a community based farmers association (Mayon Farmer's Association) and introduced banking.

When I came to Barangay Sua, Bicol, on the East side of Luzon, the main Island, it was a case of sponsoring a whole family including creating work for the parents, and it soon became adopting the whole community. 

This meant re-building the Elementary school and fitting it out with everything necessary for a good education for the kids. It also meant introducing a feeding program to keep 150 of the 320 awake and alert. With no gas in the tank they would arrive at school exhausted. It meant building a brand new health clinic capable of serving all emergency needs including baby delivery. It meant increasing the income of the families and as the only form of employment was farming it meant increasing farmer yields. This meant forming a farmer association and providing input loans, water supply etc. It meant care for the environment and most of all, it meant restoring Hope. 

So the Journey began and so it continues. 

I’m now 67 and in perfect health (no drugs required) and we have a succession plan in place – just in case. 

As I have verbally informed the folk here “ this is a lifelong commitment. Not leaving ‘til the job is done.”

http://www.muravahfoundation.com

Muravah Foundation has now adopted the school and the school classrooms, roofs and windows have been re-built and painted. All blocks of rooms are now connected by a covered walkway and we have installed a new toilet block. 

Muravah Foundation has already supplied educational books, shelving and furniture for the library, and security windows for the office and library.  We supplied the best available English coaching manuals which were introduced into the curriculum in June 2011.

http://www.muravahfoundation.com/Projects/education.htm

Last year we were feeling pretty pleased with the progress we have made by increasing production for 100’s of rice and vegetable growers. We then reflected on our motto “ We take people out of poverty permanently”. Hey! What about the families with no land? Still dirt poor living well below the poverty line, not enough food on the table, and here we are surrounded by them, and yes – we are still feeding 112 kids every day at the Tumpa Elementary school. The answer was staring us in the face. All around there is arable vegetable growing land not being farmed due to absent, old or sick owners. We formed a business unit called M.F.A. FARMS and approached the owners with the proposition that we farm it and in return we will plant the land with coconut. All agreed and we now employ several of the previously unemployed to work the land. The unemployed without farming skills will be included as apprentices as we grow. This is early days, and we’re still in the red, but we will make this work. Currently we have 11 hectares planted with potential for 35 hectares and that’s just in barangay Sua. The Mayor has organized tables for us in the farmer market in town for retail and wholesale sales of our produce. We are now well recognized and respected by the Government agencies.

http://www.muravahfoundation.com/Projects.htm

Doesn't this strike anyone as weird? That a foreigner is adopting whole communities? That a foreigner is adopting schools and providing them with instructional materials? That a foreigner is working with famers to increase the crop yield? That a foreigner is creating jobs for the people? That a foreigner has established a banking system to provide small business loans?

What is going on here? This man is literally doing all the jobs the government is tasked with and he is doing it better than them! This NGO has taken over whole barangays and has effectively become the government providing healthcare, education, jobs, banking, and even teaching farmers how to farm more effectively. And he has the support of the Philippine government!

There is a Department of Education and a Department of Agriculture and a Department of Labor. Where are these government agencies? Why aren't they providing educational materials to poor schools or assisting farmers in increasing their crop yield or creating jobs and other economic opportunities for the people? Those tasks are actually part of the constitutional mandates of those agencies.

Job creation:

Article 13 

SECTION 2. The promotion of social justice shall include the commitment to create economic opportunities based on freedom of initiative and self-reliance.

Increasing the crop yield:

Article 13 

SECTION 5. The State shall recognize the right of farmers, farmworkers, and landowners, as well as cooperatives, and other independent farmers’ organizations to participate in the planning, organization, and management of the program, and shall provide support to agriculture through appropriate technology and research, and adequate financial, production, marketing, and other support services.

Education:

Article 2 

SECTION 17. The State shall give priority to education, science and technology, arts, culture, and sports to foster patriotism and nationalism, accelerate social progress, and promote total human liberation and development.

Article 14 

SECTION 1. The State shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all. 

SECTION 2. The State shall: 

(1) Establish, maintain, and support a complete, adequate, and integrated system of education relevant to the needs of the people and society; 

SECTION 4.  

(2) The control and administration of educational institutions shall be vested in citizens of the Philippines.

When a foreigner adopts a school, rebuilds it, and provides it with educational materials who is controlling that school? The foreigner of course. But no one sees a problem with that and in fact Bob Murray claims his organisation is recognised and respected by government agencies.

Those agencies should be appalled at this situation, aghast that an Australian has commandeered a whole barangay, and ashamed with themselves for allowing it to happen. This man, this Australian, with his NGO, is outperforming the government in the very areas they are tasked with overseeing! 

Apparently Filipinos are better off when foreigners are in control. Why isn't the government doing its job and why, when it does do its job, does it do so in a desultory and perfunctory manner? Why are schools lacking in proper educational materials and teachers underpaid? Why are famers not getting the best from their land? Why are people left without jobs and relying on handouts from their OFW relatives? Why are there homeless people and people living in shanties when the constitution specifically states that the State is to provide affordable housing to the underprivileged?

Article 13 

SECTION 9. The State shall, by law, and for the common good, undertake, in cooperation with the public sector, a continuing program of urban land reform and housing which will make available at affordable cost decent housing and basic services to underprivileged and homeless citizens in urban centers and resettlements areas. It shall also promote adequate employment opportunities to such citizens. In the implementation of such program the State shall respect the rights of small property owners.

A foreigner is also breaking into this market which should be covered by the government.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/10/15/18/danish-firm-connovate-forays-into-ph-affordable-housing-sector

"We’re starting with affordable housing. It is a bit more refined than low-cost housing. We started out at the affordable stage and from there we can move from the mid-income market and progress," Engaard told ANC's The Boss. 

"To be frank with you, it’s not absolutely about the money, it’s more because I can see the vision that Emma Imperial has in the region and wants to create affordable homes for the people of the Philippines," Engaard said.

Not only is Engaard a capitalist he is also a philanthropist! He is in it for the money as well as to share in a vision to help Filipinos. The government is not a capitalist system at all. It is to have its power derived from the people and to serve the people. But the people are either not being served or they are being underserved. What power do the people really have when the government which is said to receive its power from them does not serve them the way it should? None! They have no power at all.

Why are foreigners doing the job of the government and doing it better than them?

The answer is simple.

The bureaucrats and politicians in the Philippine government are too busy stealing from the people and misspending or not spending their budgets. Maybe federalism and thus more government will fix this mess.