by Morgan Pfau
A typhoon recently swept through the Philippines, taking houses, cars, and lives in its mighty grip. The aftermath of this devastating storm is mind-boggling, as it tore the country apart. The winds reached an astonishing 175 mph and there was also a reported twenty-foot storm surge. Although news reporters warned the Filipinos, many didn’t take precaution because of the clear, sunny skies that were visible hours before the storm. Thus, a very key question rises from this event: if more people had listened to the news reports, would the amount of destruction and loss of life have been as tragic as it turned out to be?
The poor conditions of many houses resulted in what now looks like heaping masses of building material and stray wood pilings. Many houses seemed inadequately built for such a disaster, and were probably better described as ‘shacks’ than actual houses. Even though the storm was incredibly strong, the structural condition of many Filipinos’ homes was a major contribution to the amount of injuries and deaths that were reported. The rebuilding of the towns has already begun, but the cost of the repairs is monumental.