Almost one month has passed since typhoon “Ondoy” (Ketsana) devastated Metro Manila. Hundreds of evacuees are still in evacuation centers, many communities are still in knee deep in flood water. A team from the Task Force Children of the Storm visited the evacuation center in Alabang Elementary School, Muntinlupa City, to gather data before conducting psycho-social debriefing in the next few weeks. Here are some photos taken last October 22, 2009
Approximately 500 familes are still cramped in the Alabang Elementary School, one of the three evacuation Centers in Muntinlupa
Aside from the 500 families in this evacuation Center, there are approximately 300 families in Cupang Elementary School and hundreds more in Tunasan Sports Complex
A two-storey school building in Alabang Elem. School is being used as an evacuation center.
Most of the evacuees came from the surrounding barangays near Laguna Lake (Tabing Aplaya, Cupang, Anahaw, Morning Breeze), which up to now are still flooded.
Despite the resumption of classes in Alabang Elementary School, evacuees still stay in the school campus because the government has yet to respond to their needs. The inaction of the authorities resulted to more problems. Activities in the school are affected as some of the classrooms are still being occupied by the evacuees. On the other hand, evacuees lose their sense of privacy and are even threatened to be displaced once again whenregular classes are eventually resumed.
Children evacuees played in school corridors.
Uncomfortable crib - A baby sleeps in one of the desk inside a classroom in Alabang Elementary School now doubling as a crib
Unnatural playground-children evacuees play around the cramped evacuation center
Home sweet home? - A girl eats her lunch after going home directly in the evacuation center after attending her class. School is now also home for this girl.
After the visit and data gathering in the evacuation center, the team proceeded to Brgy. Ilaya where two adjacent sitios (Anahaw and 7A Extension) are still submerged in knee-deep floodwater. Houses are interconnected with bamboo poles used as bridges, making the communities highly vulnerable to leptospirosis and dengue. Two deaths due to leptospirosis were already reported here.
The entrance to sitio 7-A Extn., Brgy. Ilaya, Muntinlupa
An elderly woman stares blankly, as if thinking "when will our normal lives be back?"
As the team moved on to the adjacent Sitio Anahaw, the floodwater got deeper.
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