Storms, Blackouts, & Water Woes

Typhoon Basyang (international name: Conson) ripped through the country Tuesday night, directly hitting the metropolis and causing a massive blackout over Luzon. Power went out before midnight as howling winds and heavy rains pounded the city. By one in the morning, the entire Luzon grid had gone down and we were left in the dark to ponder our fates and ride out the storm. Telephone lines were cut; cellular communications were also spotty and unreliable hours into Wednesday morning.

The kids woke up shortly after the power went out, complaining of the sudden lack of airconditioning. I could not open windows as the strong rain threatened to flood the room and wet electronic gadgets. So, I stayed up half the night fanning Alphonse furiously. Even with my exertions, however, he could not sleep very well, tossing and turning all night. At four in the morning, he was too tired to care and he finally fell asleep on the floor, his head resting on a beanbag.

We were one of the lucky ones; we got our power restored at five in the morning. Last night, the news over radio reported that there were still many parts of the city without electricity. We could only pray for those who still suffer in the darkness and hope that things normalize today.

Still, we were not without our own share of problems. Because this season’s rain has fallen sparingly over the major dams supplying the city with water, we started to feel the effects of low water pressure a few days ago. True, we have been conserving water since the start of summer, storing up as much as we can and using and reusing water with an end to conserving our city’s depleted supplies. But with our house perched on high ground, we have been unable to access water some days altogether. We wake up at dawn to wait for trickles of water, and even then, some days, water simply doesn’t come. Today, however, we were ecstatic to see water flow freely out of our faucets for the first time in days. Typhoon Basyang might have caused a lot of damage in the city, but it certainly did its share in raising the dams’ water level some.

The sun is finally up today and we intend to enjoy the good weather it brings. We desperately need more rain to fall over the dams, but for now, we are simply grateful that the darkness of the last two days have been dispelled. Enjoy the sun, everyone!