I had an important transaction scheduled in Naga City, Camarines Sur, last October 22, 2024. It was a day full of hope until I met Kristine.
I was alone in my hotel in Naga before I met her, worried because I was new to the place and the rain kept getting stronger. There was also no electricity in the middle of the night.
Early morning of Oct 22, I sent an email to the other party and asked if our meeting would still push through in light of the weather. Surprisingly, I was told their team would be coming to meet me. I rushed to get ready and did not bother to eat breakfast. I wanted to move early and figure out how to get to our meeting place by 10 A.M.
I arrived earlier than expected while the team I was to meet was a little late. They felt so relieved having reached Naga. They said they had a turbulent flight from Manila to Legazpi with zero visibility and a windy land trip from Legazpi to Naga.
After a few minutes, we began our meeting. While we talked, we could hear the wind blowing against the windows of the building where we were. “Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!” We stared at each other and instead of focusing on our agenda, we were all more concerned about how we were going to return to our families.
My flight back to Davao was via Legazpi. I was prepared to return there alone, but since the other party and his team were traveling through Legazpi on their way back to Northern Samar by land, they invited me to ride with them.
I consented because I had no way of getting to the bus terminal due to the intense rain. As first-timers, we had no idea that Naga and the nearby towns were vulnerable to floods and typhoons. So, we started driving. Everything went well until we had to halt. We assumed it was simply a traffic bottleneck. As we moved forward, we discovered that the road ahead was severely flooded and that drivers were advised to do a U-turn because the roads were no longer passable.
Our vehicle was a Toyota Rush. Since it wasn't too high, we immediately made a U-turn. We were fortunate to spot a gas station. We parked for a while and watched what the other people were doing. We were about to start moving again when we saw that the petrol station's rear was elevated. We discovered upon entering the compound that it was a pension house.
Since the vehicles on the road were no longer moving, we decided to remain at the pension house and wait for the typhoon to stop and for the flood to subside by the next day. Thankfully, we received guidance NOT to proceed with the trip. Otherwise, we might have drowned! Whoa!!!
By the way, Kristine was the typhoon that landed in Camarines Sur, Philippines on October 22, 2024.
Her impact on the people of Camarines Sur continues to this day. The national government and international groups are flooding the area with aid to help the people recuperate and resume their regular lives.
She added a special touch to my first trip to Naga City, Camarines Sur! I was strengthened by my encounter with her, and I still want to return.