TANAUAN, Philippines – On November 8, Corazon dela Cruz, the barangay (village) chair of San Roque in Tanauan, lost her parents to the storm surge caused by Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan).

But Dela Cruz had no time to grieve. She says she had to attend to her constituents in the barangay.

For 3 days after the storm, San Roque went without food or water. Aid was nowhere in sight. During those 3 days, Dela Cruz says people in her community grew impatient and tense. The day after the storm, they only had biscuits to eat; later on, locals began entering stores in search of food and water.

“Hindi ako umalis para may taong magsasabi kung ano dapat gawin kasi naawa talaga ako sa aking barangay,” Dela Cruz says. (I didn’t leave so someone could tell them what they should do. I really felt bad for my barangay.) 

Locals made do with the food and water that was left in the area. Children cried out of hunger. But Dela Cruz, who is on her second term as barangay chairman, says she puts no blame on the provincial and national government. 

“Mahirap talaga pumasok ang relief goods dahil maraming harang sa daan,” says Dela Cruz. 

(It was hard to bring relief goods here because the roads weren’t cleared yet.) 

Strength they didn’t expect

Even before Yolanda came, Dela Cruz says she and her barangay councilors made the rounds to warn locals about the strong winds and storm surge that Yolanda would bring. It was the same warning that her own parents ignored. 

“Sabi nila sa akin, kung talagang oras na namin to, wala na tayong magagawa. Kaya hindi na sila nag-evacuate,” Dela Cruz says. (They told me: if this is our time, we can’t do anything about it. That’s why they chose not to evacuate.) 

Her parents stayed on the second floor of their home when Yolanda wreaked havoc on Tanauan. Their bodies were recovered the day after. The whole time, Dela Cruz and the rest of her family sought shelter at the Tanauan Gym, along with other locals. 

“Napakalaki ng alon, hindi ko pa rin maintindihan masyado dahil ang lakas talaga ng alon. Akala ko mamamatay na kami,” she says. 

(Haiyan brought big waves. I can’t wrap my head around how strong they were. I thought we were all going to die.) 

Dela Cruz’ children, siblings, and granchildren now all live in her home, one of the few that remained undamaged post-Yolanda. She says it might be God’s way of telling her that she had a job to do. 

Food and water eventually reached Tanauan. On Sunday, November 17, residents walked around the town with a sense of purpose absent in the days right after the storm. Commerce was slowly returning, despite prices reaching record highs. 

Pork from neighboring Palo town cost P250 per kilo, and would be sold at P280 per kilo in Tanauan. The cost of fuel for the vehicles that survived Yolanda rose from P60 a liter to almost P200. Aid comes in a steady stream, but Dela Cruz admitted it wasn’t the amount of food locals are used to. 

“Sabi ko sa kanila, hati-hati nalang kami. Kahit isang subo ng bigas, pwede na basta hindi tayo gutom parati,” she says. (I told them that we’d share the food that we have. One spoonful of rice is enough, as long as we don’t starve.) 

Dela Cruz goes to the municipal hall daily to make sure her barangay gets a piece of aid that reaches the municipality. 

Back on their feet 

Since the town established a rhythm in relief distribution, Dela Cruz says San Roque needs help rebuilding their fishing industry. Most of the barangay’s residents, she says, rely on the sea for food and income. Dela Cruz herself sells fish for a living while her husband is a fisherman. 

“Sana makakuha lang kami ulit ng mga bangka, ng lambat, para mabuhay ulit kami,” she says. “Yan lang kailangan namin para maka-ahon kami,” she adds.  

(We need fishing boats and nets so we can go back to fishing. That’s all we need so we can recover from Yolanda.) 

Despite the exodus of Leyte and Samar residents to Manila and nearby Cebu, Dela Cruz, like many others in her town and barangay, says she has no plans of leaving. 

“Hindi ako aalis, kasi kung pupunta ako sa ibang lugar, ano ang kabuhayan namin doon? Kaya pa namin ito,” she says. (I won’t leave. If I go to another place, what will my livelihood be? We can still endure this.) –Rappler.com