Monday, January 08, 2007 'Bicol Rising' in I-Witness Monday night
MORE than 600 dead, with hundreds still missing, thousands injured, and millions of pesos worth of damaged properties.
These numbers describe the devastation caused by super typhoon Reming in Bicol but these figures cannot quantify the psychological and emotional trauma inflicted upon the victims.
Documentarist Jay Taruc has traveled many times to Bicol in the past year for his documentaries on whale sharks, teachers and the Mayon Volcano. But his latest trip to the region is not a happy one.
He revisits the shoreline of Barangay. Padang and Bigaa, known for their whale shark sightings, only to find a virtual desert.
Gone are the boats and noises coming from fishermen and children. Everywhere, there are only flattened fields of destruction. Jay also revisits the schools of towns previously featured in his documentary, only to find each filled no longer with students but with displaced residents.
And among the homeless, Jay finds out, are some of his old friends and interviewees.
In the midst of it all, Jay Taruc documents the efforts of these Bicolanos to overcome the tragedy and slowly rebuild their lives. "Pagsibol ng Bicol" airs Monday night on GMA's I-Witness.
