Five years after Typhoon Haiyan
A young survivor reflects on how the typhoon changed her hometown and her life
When I was 13, I experienced the wrath of Typhoon Haiyan. I held on to the window grills during the storm surge and got separated from the rest of my family. I can still remember how freezing cold it was.
After the storm passed, our house was partly destroyed. We spent days sleeping in wet clothes and shared one plate of food.
The time when people assumed we’d be the saddest was the time that we were most grateful. Grateful for being alive, primarily. And also, grateful for all that we’ve been given after losing everything.
Five years later, I am now a Grade 12 student. And Tacloban hasn’t just recovered—we’ve stood up and we’re running in this life’s race again. We went through devastation, yes. But we were never alone in recovering from it.
For us, it meant so much. It meant like the world was telling us that we were not alone. For us, it was hope. That is why in every Taclobanon’s heart, is hope. Because the world has lit up that hope in all of us.
Today, electricity isn’t just back in Tacloban, we can even access the internet. Education is definitely back to normal. We actively participate in school activities, serve in organizations outside school and have become more conscious of how to care for the environment.
Because of Haiyan, nature now has a personal and deeper significance to us. The government of Tacloban now emphasizes children’s safety. Whenever the weather poses danger, classes are suspended. Knowing what it feels like to be in need, Tacloban also engages itself in relief-operations for other provinces.
Today, we've risen above the calamity. We live in a mindset of a hopeful future. That is because of every help and prayers sent for us. God knows how grateful we are. Haiyan is part of us and it made us stronger. It left an identity for Tacloban that united us with the world, as a rock that may have tumbled us along the way.
The world and organizations like UNICEF encouraged us to stay strong, embrace our identity, and stand after tumbling down. We, the children of Tacloban, were minors during the devastation. We could've lost hope. We were unfamiliar of what we were experiencing and we could have expected it to carry on forever.
We could've thought there is nothing more to our situation than the chaos in our environment. But we didn't. So thank you to everyone. Because you made us realize how special we were, how vulnerable we were, yet still capable.
You taught us to keep going. You taught us to dream. And most especially, you believed in us. Now, we believe in ourselves, too. We do everything we can for our future. We act. We utilize our capabilities to make an impact in our families and in our communities.
When I was 13, I experienced the wrath of Haiyan. Today I'm 18 and headstrong. I face life with a hopeful heart.
Kiana Gualberto was only 13 when Typhoon Haiyan hit her hometown of Tacloban City. Now 18 years old, she has since developed an inner resilience to adversities and maintains a positive outlook on her future.
