Since the Philippines is in the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, meteorologists say we shouldn’t be surprised at all about experiencing extreme weather including heavy rains, strong winds, flash floods and storm surges every now and then.
And there’s every reason to believe them. Growing up with these natural phenomena around us, we’ve been used to seeing and experiencing all sorts of weather disturbances, which, history tells us, have been the major forces that have shaped the geologic characteristics of our natural landscapes today.
But the intervals between these weather anomalies used to be long, so we often called them flukes, meaning their chances of recurring are so rare. We viewed these phenomena and the damage that they bring as unusual and accidental.
These days, however, that common belief about these climatic anomalies as mere flukes is starting to change. For one, the incidents of strong typhoons battering the country are getting more frequent. At the rate it’s going, there’s a danger that we may one day consider a super typhoon as a normal occurrence instead of a fluke.
It used to be that we counted decades before each devastating typhoon visited the country. But now, they seem to be happening more frequently and increasingly in shorter intervals. And with each visit, they are more powerfully destructive. I mean, just look at the devastation caused by Super Typhoon Yolanda (2013), Super Typhoon Odette (2021) and now Typhoon Tino (2025).
Devastating typhoons are now visiting us more frequently and at shorter intervals. What’s even more disturbing is when we start believing that this is the new normal and that there’s nothing we can do about it. Whereas they used to be flukes that surprised us, the super typhoons are fast becoming regular treats.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. We must refuse the narrative that this is completely unpreventable and that there’s nothing we can do but accept this as fate that we just have to adjust.
Climate change, the main source of this erratic weather pattern, is something that we can and must resist. Let’s adapt to environmentally friendly practices in our everyday lives and convince others to do so, too. Our household switch to solar energy brought about by post-typhoon power outages ought to continue, especially if we have already invested in it by emptying hardware stores of solar-powered lights and appliances.
Small as these practices are, they contribute significantly to the fight against global warming, especially if we reach out to our friends, neighbors and communities to follow suit. Let’s do away with single-use plastics like cups and pungko-pungko eating gloves. Let’s reduce, reuse and recycle.
Then there’s environmental and climate justice advocacy. Sometimes, it pays to listen to environmental advocates and their messages instead of just dismissing them as outright a nuisance. If it weren’t for people like them way back since the ‘60s and ‘70s, we wouldn’t have been educated about global warming all along.
Finally, let’s be aware of the consequences of having fossil fuel power plants and stop demanding more economic progress that’s fueled by traditional sources of energy. While many parts of the world are now switching to renewable power sources, our country shouldn’t fall far behind considering that we have so much natural resources like waterfalls and abundant sunlight as alternative energy sources.