This Saturday, Typhoon Noru (known locally as Karding) began fiercely showering in Luzon, Philippines.
Overnight, Noru intensified rapidly, arriving as a super typhoon with sustained winds at a maximum of 240 kilometers per hour. The violent storm slammed onto the main island, consequently prompting President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to suspend work and school. Furthermore, authorities closed the stock and bond markets on Monday.
By Monday, Noru was classified as a Category 2 typhoon by the US Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Today, according to Richard Gordon (chairman of the Philippines Red Cross), five bodies of rescue workers were found in the chest-level floods of debris and submerged streets. He went on to say that more landslides are expected in rural and mountainous regions. Regions with immensely poor infrastructure and a lack of emergency services and systems. Regions that will undoubtedly fall victim to more casualties.
Schools and gymnasiums in the area have transformed into evacuation centers, and tents have been set up to host 13,600 families in order to avoid the flood. Supplies are being airlifted and the Red Cross has mobilized 2,000 volunteers in affected areas.
For me, Typhoon Noru came into my life through a ping on my phone.
To me, it appeared as just another typhoon in the Philippines.
Last year, it was Super Typhoon Rai. A Category 5 hurricane and the second most destructive typhoon to ever hit the Philippines. More than 400 lives and 1.5 million homes were lost. It cost the nation USD$790 million.
In 2013, Super Typhoon Haiyan claimed the lives of more than 6,300 people in the Southeast Asian nation. It was the most costly typhoon at USD$2.98 billion.
In 2009, Typhoon Ketsana claimed the lives of more than 460 people. It cost the nation USD$188 million.
The list continues.
For most, these typhoons seem to have very little to do with us and are just a product of geography. But there is more to this story besides statistics and reports. There are stories of families ripped apart. The stories of lost homes. The stories of the continuous cycle of destruction. There are also stories of the community’s resilience and grit. Their ability to survive, help, and rebuild.
The past decade has resulted in the most frequent and fatal storms. On average, 20 storms/typhoons hit the Philippines annually and are progressively more destructive. Research shows that this situation is only going to intensify. They’re going to hit harder and will become more difficult to predict and prepare for. More loss and more grief.
The culprit of all this tragedy is actually you and I.
Climate change, caused by human activities, is what is fueling this increasingly disastrous situation. The surge in sea surface and subsurface temperatures—due to the enhanced greenhouse gas effect—has resulted in the loss of the natural buffer on typhoon strength that comes from the colder water from below the ocean’s surface. Furthermore, the melting of ice-caps causes rising sea levels which only worsen the effects of these monstrous typhoons.
The World Meteorological Organization stated that weather-related disasters, compelled by climate change, increased by a factor of five in the last 50 years. In the 2016 study, “Intensification of landfalling typhoons over the northwest Pacific since the late 1970s“, also supports the relationship between climate change and the worsening storms. It found that in the last 37 years, landfalling typhoons in Southeast and East Asian countries have intensified by 12-15%. Additionally, the proportion of category 4 and 5 storms have doubled or in some cases tripled. Climate change has initiated the urgent need for humanity to adapt.
The Philippines is immensely vulnerable to these extreme events. The country is struggling with poverty, overpopulation, instability in the government, and deep-rooted inequalities. They lack the disposable funds to tackle this situation through environmental initiatives or buy building infrastructure to better prepare and rebuild. The Philippines contributes less than 0.4% of carbon dioxide emissions, from industry and fossil fuels, which incentivizes the climate crisis. In comparison, the global north is responsible for 92%. In 2019, the nation made a forceful statement to the world when they sent back 1,500 tonnes of illegally dumped rubbish back to Canada. However, Cop26, one of our last chances to avert disaster, was a failure. Commitments are not being met as we continue to prioritize profit over people and the planet.
The Philippines, amongst many other nations, are paying a disproportionate price for our wrongdoings. Despite their small contribution to the problem, the consequences pose a huge threat to them. We can romanticize this narrative through the lens of Filipinos’ strong resilience, but the truth is that we have the power to stop this suffering. Without change, these tragedies will continue into the foreseeable future.
We have the chance to make a change, and it's our last.
We need to take it.
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