Haiyan-Yolanda, 2013

Blog 472:

Dark, overcast skies warned-
In a modest home somewhere East
A son’s voice heralded:
“Inay, Itay … matinding bagyo narito na;
Let’s find shelter somewhere higher ground!”

Winds cried and howled-
A lost child down the street laments
In tears, she calls:
“Bebeng, Kuya … nasaan kayo?"
But no one comes near where she stood

 
Unsettling unease permeated the surroundings
Children, left unintentionally to tend on their own sang panic cries  
Storm Signal 1 rang first around town
Rain trickled, and then fell in huge, non-stop drops
Storm Signal 2 was radioed
In villages tiny or large
Torrential waters from the sky poured their might
Storm signal 3 did not need to be sounded ...
Waves ravished and winds blasted rains
 
The ocean churned as the rains battered it
It rounded up again, and again, its strength
It threw its fury-like hands every which way
And before anyone could foretell its wrath
It rounded up its massive water power
Then spew out all its rage from inside out

It didn’t care whom it hurt-
It didn’t care where it went-
It didn’t care what it destroyed-
It didn't care when and why it landed-

All things standing on ground …
Those made from years of human sweat … toiling …
Anything that stood in its way, it devoured
All living creatures it met or touched …
It spun, swallowed, and regurgitated seven times
Until life was drained ... wrung out

 

In just a few minutes of deluge-like smashing … slamming …
Homes and building structures all pulverized
Electric down and demolished
Water systems shattered
The dead lie on the ground
One outrageous storm named Yolanda
Brought human death toll in thousands
Devastated livelihoods, and commerce
collapsed bridges and thoroughfares
Left Tacloban City of Leyte, Philippines in ruins!