#GMBNews I Feature: On December 30, 2018, the town of Buhi was struck by a massive flood that caused extensive property damage and claimed several lives in the lakeside barangays due to landslides. Professor Antonio Contreras wrote an article reflecting on this tragedy, and GMB has been granted permission to republish it. The article is timely and relevant, especially as flood control has once again become a central issue in local discussions. Here is his story.
PART I
THIS FLOOD IS NOT AN ACT OF GOD. IT IS BECAUSE OF DEVELOPMENT
By Antonio P. Contreras
December 30, 2018
I grew up in this town, Buhi in Camarines Sur. While I no longer live there, I still keep it close to my heart. It is a place I will always call home.
And in my entire life, from childhood memories until now, this is the first that a flood of this magnitude has devastated our town. As of posting, more than half of the poblacion is under water, in some areas even deep enough to force people to climb up their rooftops.
While Buhi is a natural catch basin since it is surrounded by mountains and with numerous rivers and streams feeding its Lake, and there is only one outlet, severe flooding was never a problem during extreme weather events. The worst that happened before are floods along the banks of the Lake. But due to its high elevation, water empties quickly through the main outlet.
But not anymore.
Not when the government decided to put up a flood control cum irrigation dam at the mouth of the lake. The goal was to regulate the flow of the water both to provide irrigation water to the rice farms of lowland towns of Camarines Sur and Albay, as well as to be able to control the flow of water during heavy rains to prevent flooding in the said towns.
And while this may have benefited the lowland towns of the Provinces of Camarines Sur and Albay, it now appears that it has brought an environmental tragedy to Buhi.
Heavy rains brought waters to cascade down the mountain slopes from the east to swell the rivers and streams which then quickly fills out the lake. Denied of a free flowing outlet, the water backed up these inflows which caused it to breach its banks, which now is the cause of the floods in the inland barangays along the rivers. Of the six barangays in the Poblacion, only one is now not affected by floods. And as we speak, the worst is yet to come since more rains are forecasted to fall on the eastern mountain ranges of the town.
The LGU is now saddled with the burden of deciding to open the floodgates. But now, the people of Buhi are asked to bear the guilt of opening it and causing the flooding of lowland towns.
Our town is the source of water that feeds the farms in the lowlands. We have brought the blessing of irrigation. And now we are being asked to sacrifice our own lives and property to spare the many.
Development. Whereas before, it is nature and God that decide whose farms and houses will be flooded. Now, that becomes a political decision that can cost a Mayor her office, and forces people to be asked to bear the burden of a choice that they should not even be making. This is the price the people of Buhi will have to pay for that development.
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