Quick Response

Mother Nature was quite furious this week.

The people of Dagupan bore much brunt with the triple effects of strong winds coming from the northeast following heavy downpour brought on by super typhoon Mina, flooding as the rivers swelled from high tide, and the intensity 5.8 earthquake on mid-day Tuesday.

The comforting news through all these is the Dagupan City government’s prompt response to nature’s heavy blow.

This was shown in terms of the immediate evacuation of affected residents along the coastline and the approval of two resolutions placing the city under a state of calamity as well as state of impending calamity.

We are hoisting an optimist flag that the calamity funds will be flowing to the people and places that they actually belong to.

Another piece of heartening report is the possibility of the implementation, at last, of the Tondaligan Park redevelopment plan as an aftereffect of the devastation along Dagupan’s shores.

This has long been overdue. The universe, indeed, works in mysterious ways.

Now it is up to our local officials and residents to work together to turn the grand idea into reality.

But just as the people were reeling from nature’s fury and preparing to enjoy a long weekend holiday, a seemingly political deluge went kaput, giving President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo reason to impose curfew hours from 12 midnight to 5 a.m. in the capital Metro Manila and its neighboring regions. (Pangasinan and Region 1 may not have been included in the restriction, which is reminiscent of the Martial Law period during the Marcos era, but the chilling effect was definitely blown this way).

So far, the local scenario is pretty much detached from the national political turmoil given the geographical distance, allowing us to focus on the immediate needs at hand. 

We can only wait and see at this point. And pray to high heavens that the worst is not going to come.

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