Surviving "Reming"

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"It was a nightmare for 24 hours..." NOVEMBER 30, 2006: Food stocks...potable water...radio...flashlights...batteries...baby foods and supplies...all were ready for the big storm. My husband checked the electrical wires in case of any problems if ever the electricity went off. We were all gathered in the living room, waiting, wondering. Around 9:00 in the morning when it happened. The radio announcer announces that the typhoon would be a tremendous one and warned everyone to stay alert and be ready. Past 9 when we started to notice that the water starts to pour from the roof. When one part of our roof went off, I grabbed my daughter and we started to leave the living room and headed for the cleaned pig pen (without the pig, of course) where it was more sturdy than the house itself. We have left the radio so we were in complete loss on when the typhoon is going to end. We thought maybe before lunchtime, it will soon dissipate but came 12:00 noon and the storm was still there. "Mama, I am hungry", cried my 3-year-old daughter. I told my husband to look for her food inside the house and my husband immediately obliged. I was also hungry but I ignored it since I was more nervous than hungry. When my husband returned, he told me that the house was already in complete mess...everything was soaked in water because there was already a flood. I went blank because our house was only a floor high and there was no way our things would be saved from the flood. Luckily, my husband was able to get the supplies of our daughter but he was not able to get our food because it was already wet. Since the pig pen was on higher ground, we have'nt anticipated the level of water that came by. But, when it started to go inside our area, we started to evacuate. Outside, the water was about chest-high. My husband took our daughter and headed for the adjacent building and cried for help. Fortunately, someone heard him and took us. When we were already inside the 2nd floor of the building, my knees began to tremble...If there was no one outside to help us, maybe we haven't survived...(to be continued...)