RIVERSIDE residents in District 4, Conela, Consolacion are bracing themselves for the possible onslaught of tropical depression Odette (international name: Rai), due to hit Cagayan de Oro City on December 16. Coincidentally, the day is also when super typhoon Sendong hit the same area 10 years ago with devastating effects on properties and human lives.
There are still 15 households here that have yet to be relocated, 10 years since super typhoon Sendong.
However, there are other residents who have been relocated but still reside in the area because they are working in the city proper. They find the daily commute for their employment expensive because relocation areas are located in the city’s hinterland barangays. So, they would rather stay despite the danger posed.
With regard to the upcoming storm, they claim that no one from the barangay and city hall has contacted them with regard to preparation and evacuation measures, and have relied only on reports from radio and social media.
Renasol B. Valdehueza, one of the affected residents, said that she has applied for relocation since after her house was hit with Sendong, but she admitted that she did not consistently follow up, and only followed up with her application after a second storm Vinta in 2017, beset, and damaged her house.
“Pero taman run, wala man gihapon mi gi relocate. Ang sige gi ingon sa amo kay mag hulat lang,” she said.
The residents are currently making preparations for the storm by moving their household possessions to the second floor, and those with one-story houses have also made preparations to flee when needed.
“Mao nga maski ten years after na igo mi sa Sendong, sige lang gihapon mi ka guol kada na lang naay bagyo ingon mo abot,” Valdehueza lamented.
