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The week after Typhoon Durian slammed
into the Philippines Bicol Region, Rice Today
ventured into the stricken area to find that the
rice-farming communities had been hit hard.
The road to Albay from theLos Baos headquartersof the
InternationalRice Research Institute(IRRI) is long but not
tedious. After 12 hours of drivingthrough town after town of
busymarkets lined withparol(Christmaslantern) vendors, deep green
coconut
plantations, quiet rice fields, andshimmering blue coast, the
landscapegave way to a city of darknessand desolationLegaspi in
AlbayProvince, Bicol, Philippines. Five
days earlier, Typhoon Durian (locallyknown as Reming) had struck
theregion, bringing winds upward of 220
km per hour and leaving hundredsdead, missing, and homeless.
Children are in the streets,barefoot and begging, the
housesbehind them destroyed. Everywhere,people are digging, either
to rebuild
homes or find missing relatives.With no power, no water,
androads that have collapsed into
rivers,Rice Today set out to findthe rice farmers who live at
thefoot of Mayon Volcano in Albay.
It has been a difficult year forAlbay, to say the least. Only a
few
months previously, Mayon wasthreatening to erupt (seeRice
inharms way on pages 24-27 ofRice
Today Vol. 5, No. 4). The volcanic
activity died down, and but thenDurian did what the volcano,
thistime, couldnt. The intense typhoonrains dislodged the tons and
tonsof volcanic ash, creating massive
landslides that obliterated houses andrice fields and, asRice
Today went topress, killed more than 400 people,
with at least that many stil l missing.Here,Rice Today brings
you
images and stories that offer aglimpse of the terror that
Durian
blasted into the lives of some ofthe Albay rice-farming
families,
as well as the despair and hopethat the typhoon left behind.
Rice TodayJanuary-March 200720 Rice TodayJanuary-March 2007
Once were rice fieldsstory by Meg Mondoedo, photography by Ariel
Javellana
RICE FIELDS in AlbayProvince, Bicol, stretch outto the foothills
of MayonVolcano when it was threat-ening to erupt in July 2006.Six
days after TyphoonDurian struck, the scene(right) is very
different. Thehuge mudflow at the rightof the photo claimed
manylives and obliterated ricefields and homes.
A GROUP of children posein front of rice fields inSanto Domingo,
AlbayProvince, in happier timesin 2001. John OliverLeron (below)
sits in thesame area after TyphoonDurian triggered thedevastating
mudslides.
THE REMAINS of a house in SanIsidro, Albay, perch
precariouslyover a ditch fashioned by the riverof mud, rocks, and
volcanic ashthat carved through the region.
CHILDREN IN DARAGAa mammoth boulderdeadly forces unleashswept
into town by th
ALBENAVENTE
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24 Rice TodayJanuary-March 2007 Rice TodayJanuary-March 2007
Gloria Miranda, 51Gloria lives with her partner and theirteenage
daughter, Fanela. Duriandestroyed most of her crops and more
than half of her house (see photosabove), and killed her farm
animals.
We just stayed inside the housefrom 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. We
couldntgo out because the rain was sohard. All our things got
wet.
We will plant again, start over,and raise animals again. Werenot
leaving. Its hard to evacuatebecause this is our home.
As long as we have rice, fish sauce,dried fish, and water, well
be ok.
Sofroneo Fron Rodriguez, 59In July, Fron and his family
weretaking refuge from Mayon volcano inan evacuation center. This
time, he
was taking stock of what used to be
his farm and is now a swath of lahar,the black, tar-like mix of
ash and mudcharacteristic of volcanic eruptions.
Many cows, carabaos,and pigs died. I dont know thenumber, but
even the piggery was
destroyed. The flood was caused
by the mud flow from Mayon.This is the strongest typhoon I
have
seen. Good thing my house did not fallapart, but all of my
seedlings are dead.
Thank God no one died in my family.Because of the damage, I
will
lose my income of 5,000 Philippinepesos [US$100] a month unless
Ican get new seedlings soon. We will
have to start over again. Our onlysource of income is now
gone.
Im thinking of moving my house toa higher place so my family can
be safe.
We were safer during
Mayons lava flow. With thistyphoon, we lost everything.
Two farmers. Two stories.Although they lost so much, Gloriaand
Fron can count themselveslucky. They and their families arealive
and well. As well as losing their
fields to mud, rocks, and ash, manyothers lost loved ones.
Thousandsare living in evacuation centersand will be there for who
knows
how long. Hundreds of bodies wereburied in mass graves,
unidentified.
AsRice Today leaves Albay, thesmell of rotting garbage and
deadanimals is at times overwhelming.
Peoples bodies are still trappedbeneath the earth. The air i s
cool,with the tropica l winter bringingrelief from the usual humid
heat.Its almost Christmas but not a
singleparolcan be seen. MayonVolcano remains a beautiful
sight,
its spectacular silhouette risingabove the lahar. But, right
now, itshard not to think its just anotherdisaster waiting to
happen.
RICE FARMER GloriaMirandas house at thefoot of Mayon Volcano
wasthreatened by lava flowsin July 2006 and (right)half-destroyed
by TyphoonDurian in November 2006.
RICE FARMER SofroneoFron Rodriguez.
THE LANDSLIDE consisting of mud, rocks, and volcanicash
inundated towns throughout Albay Province.
THIS RICE MILL in San Isidro, Albay, is owned by Luis Balilo, 22
( in white t-shirt), who is now unsureabout when he can resume his
milling operations after his one and only mill was buried deep in
mud.I dont know what my plans are, he said. Ill just open it again
when I have the budget. Moreimportant to him in the immediate
aftermath was the loss of his three German shepherds, who used
toguard the mill.
RICE FARMERwhose photo Rice in harm24-27 ofRiceNo. 4), lost
hIsidro, Albayfamily was un
CorrecIn Rice Toincorrectlaran as SWe wouldboth men
GODDARDS
PACE
FLIGHTCENTER,NASA
A SATELLITE photo of TyphoonDurian over the Philippines on30
November 2006, the dayit hit the Bicol region, severalhundred
kilometers southeastof Manila.
ALBAY PROVINCE,BICOL REGION
