"Having just come in from Boracay, I want to react to your column with regard to that area’s capability to withstand natural calamity. I believe it is in line with your suggestions to improve it to international standards. "First of all, I think they should improve communications and coordination between the ports, the weather agency, transport companies and local government.
"Our flight left Manila around 6:30 a.m. Friday after an unexplained delay and landed in a slight drizzle at Caticlan an hour later. When we got to the jetty port, we knew right away that something was wrong because there were large number of people sitting around inside the terminal and, except for a theee-deck ferry and a small speed boat, there were no vessels docked outside.
"Still, the security guards at the door went through our bags as if it were business as usual. There was no one posted at the box office where they usually sold tickets for the ferry ride, and the people behind the new counter where you paid the new ‘environmental fee’ went only as far as to say that they would only start collecting when the Coast Guard says it was ok to send boats across the strait.
"There was no official word when this would be so. There was no word about weather conditions, either, but right outside the terminal building, Nature was putting on quite a show with wind, rain and spectacular waves (the only TV set in the main lobby showed Boracay propaganda all day long).
"Any person in his right mind would have turned around and left right away, but coming all the way from Manila and with our objective tantalizingly within sight, we sat down for what turned out to be quite a long wait. In the meantime, tricycles, cars, vans and buses just kept bringing people to the jetty port for the better part of the day.
"At this point, I’d like to say that the facilities in and around the port are adequate. There are places to eat, stores selling the essentials, functioning toilets, etc. However, people seemed to be generally unconcerned about getting updated about the weather conditions.
"When a port official did come out at around 1 p.m., he addressed the terminal full of people using a megaphone. It was very hard to determine what was being said because of the loud lobby TV while he talked. By this time it would be useful to mention that in the Caticlan Jetty Port, there is no bank or hospital. And, as it turns out, there was also no place to sleep. "Cursory inquiries at Leony’s Mini Mart near the terminal building disclosed that there were four converted offices next door to be let over.
As far as we could tell, these were the only rooms to be had in the entire port area. Ten people got to sleep on mattresses and share one bathroom. Everyone else slept at the terminal. Take note there were families traveling with small children.
"Before I get on with my story, and going back to my first point, I believe trips to Caticlan should have been stopped much, much sooner. The flight I was on was NOT the first one for the day, but even the passengers from that flight were not able to continue on to Boracay. "There were buses scheduled to get on a ro-ro vessel to go to Roxas in Mindoro and on to Alabang and Cubao.
They were not able to continue to their destinations because the storm signal (warning mechanism) in Mindoro was worse than in Aklan. And yet they kept arriving at the port. I believe the authorities should have gotten better weather advice and passengers should have been told to look into other alternatives.
"Anyway, I was one of a lucky few who were able to book a room. We checked in at around 2 p.m. We ate a hearty meal right next to the ‘hotel’ at around 7 (for half of what you would spend on a meal at D’Mall in Boracay, by the way), and were looking at the live wire threatening to ignite the leaves of the coconut tree right across the street from us when the power went out.
"That was our signal to turn in for the night. The darkness, however, also took away the running water. And it made the sound of the howling wind, which blew all night, all the louder.
"By Saturday morning, we inspected what tropical storm signal No. 1 was capable of: A billboard, which I thought would be peeled of its tarp, had actually bent over double. Several other billboards lost their skin, but more importantly, the one vessel that remained at port had run aground during the night.
"For want of anything else to do, we walked to the airport and found it blocked by several large objects particularly this tree, which was supported by electrical wires. Good thing there was no power at the time. But then, there was no power or running water all day.
"By mid-morning, it was still raining substantially but the wind had died down. We heard that they were sending ferries to Boracay already, but there were none at the port. Apparently, there was another smaller port a few minutes from Caticlan that is used during the monsoon season; that was where the boats to Bora were.
"The people in my party decided that it wasn’t worth pushing on in the rain so we waited until it stopped. We finally got to Boracay early Saturday evening. Apparently, the boats do not go to the stations anymore.
Less boats on the horizon, better view - that’s the general idea among others, and I have to agree. "However, we were dropped off in a small and rather forlorn beach on the rocky side of the island and had to take another tricycle to D’Mall. It was quite a long trip, too. And I was able to see first-hand some of the problems that you described in your article. And though I agree with most of your diagnoses of the current situation, I’m not quite sure of your prescriptions for further development.
"Gladly, our accommodations had electricity and running water. We later found out that there was still no power in Boracay and everyone was running on generators. This was when we went to D’Mall at around 10 pm, and it was totally black.
The proprietor of the restaurant we ate in said they finally ran out of diesel. And then he good-naturedly complained about their lack of preparedness. After all, I assume their electricity got knocked out at the same time as Caticlan, and they had been without ferry service for a day, but he says they knew a typhoon was coming for three days. Better measures could have been taken.
"Early Sunday morning was again overcast, but much warmer and windless. There was debris on the beach the likes of which I had never seen – sea grass, starfish, sea urchin shells mixed with plastic bottles, tires and the like. The beach seems to be always clean in Bora.
"I guess I just wanted to let you know how serendipitous it was that I read your column the day after I got back from my trip and I thought you would appreciate some feedback on how quickly the weather can change a vacation into an adventure.
There are other aspects of your article I’d like to address actually, but I’ve gone too long already and I thought I’d get this to you quickly instead."
I hope that those who can do something to remedy the vulnerabilities of Boracay will not wait for the next fury of nature. Or it will indeed be a paradise lost.
Should you wish to share any insights, write me at Link Edge, 4th Floor, 156 Valero Street, Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City. Or e-mail me at reydgamboa@yahoo.com or at reygamboa@linkedge.biz. If you wish to view the previous columns, you may visit my website at