by Ram Maxey
While watching the reality show on cable television depicting depressing scenes in the aftermath of the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck down the Caribbean country of Haiti last Wednesday, I could not help but ask myself why mother nature had to pick on the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere to showcase its terrible wrath.
In 2008 Haiti was savaged by four hurricanes that resulted to the death of more than 800 people and widespread destruction of man-made structures. It turned out that was just a dress rehearsal for what nature had in store for the nation of 9.6 million souls, 78% of whom earn less than $2 a day (P90). That came last Wednesday when the earthquake struck.
The tentative estimate of casualties in the first 48 hours was placed at a conservative 50,000 dead, most of them still under the mountains of rubble of concrete and steel. The figure is higher than the 40,000 Japanese who perished from the atomic bomb dropped on the city of Nagasaki in 1945, three days after the city of Hiroshima was all but obliterated by the first atomic bomb ever dropped. That one killed 80,000 people. The world’s scientists who make a living studying the mysteries of nature may very well have an explanation for such natural upheavals as hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis and climate change (global warming, melting of the polar caps, snowstorms, cold spells, blizzards, etc.).
Now, Haiti!
Closer to home, Davao City experienced a mild temblor last Friday, scaring people somewhat, what with Haiti’s convulsions still fresh in their minds. Which ought to cause us to pause and take stock of all these recent tantrums of nature around planet Earth. As Dabawenyos, we have a right to be assured by our leaders that the government is prepared to handle whatever natural calamities may come our way. We can’t simply tell ourselves that Haiti is half a world away and what happened over there cannot happen here.
We can learn from the helplessness of the Haitians who are not in a position to help themselves, given their extreme poverty, lawlessness, socio-political disarray (their president in self exile in neighboring Dominican Republic), the reason why a United Nations mission is presently in the country to help Haitians help themselves under the watchful eyes of a combined military/police contingent from some member nations, including the Philippines.
Our question is: Since the Philippines is vulnerable to earthquakes, are we prepared to react effectively should a 7.0 magnitude earthquake strike these parts? That’s a good question. We cannot afford to be complacent. We cannot prevent earhquakes from happening, but being prepared to act in case they occur will save lives.
