Over the past two nights it has been difficult to fall asleep because of the wind that has been making unsettling noises as it rushes through the trees outside my bedroom window. There has been no rain, so the window is open, allowing me to hear most of the ruckus caused by nature.
On the first night, I was only able to sleep after I closed the window to shut out the noise. The wind has been so powerful and unpredictable these days that it feels like the young tree just outside our window will snap from being twisted in so many different directions. Aside from the sound of the wind rushing through the leaves, there are also many different random noises that have prevented peaceful sleep.
During the second night, my sleep didn’t fare better, because even if the windows were already shut, it felt like the wind was more powerful that time. There was still no rain, but the fear that something would break because of the power of the wind kept me from falling asleep easily.
As I lay there, waiting for sleep to come, one of the thoughts that wandered into my head was that I was fortunate that all I had to worry about were tree branches breaking, or at worst, a young tree being toppled by the wind, which according to my nocturnal calculations, would hopefully miss the house if it did fall. There was no rain, so flooding wasn’t going to be a problem, and my house wasn’t making other weird noises, so hopefully, nothing was in danger of getting blown off.
Although typhoon signal number 1 was raised only in the middle of the week, classes in the province have been canceled most of the week already. This storm must be a fearsome one, or our public officials are just being overly cautious these days. Anyway, in my part of the province, there hasn’t been much rain, but the strong winds have been quite worrying, especially late at night (or early morning).
When it comes to rains and flooding, there isn’t much we can do. Those who live in flood prone areas must evacuate, while those who want to protect their homes and its contents can maybe prepare sandbags or somehow raise their valuables to somewhat higher ground.
The same can be said for winds. All we can do is make sure everything that can be blown away is either stored or secured. Homes that have loose fixtures are bound to break free, so those that have put off minor repairs would be advised to act proactively or suffer the inconvenience of having those vulnerable bits and pieces of their homes being carried away by the strong winds that come with storms.
However, just as incessant rains expose leaky roofs and porous walls, and remind us of our vulnerability to floods, strong winds do the same for little things that if not repaired, could become serious problems in our homes. These are the bits and pieces that could be blown away by themselves, aren’t so bad, but if it is followed by rain, could spell disaster for a home.
Other threats that come with wind are flying and falling objects that could cause damage, such as junk and tree branches. That means homeowners who want to sleep soundly need to keep up with the maintenance of the house, as well as its grounds. Those with trees near their homes have to either have it trimmed to ensure they don’t catch too much wind and topple over, or check the general health to ensure that weak and rotting branches don’t break off and fall when it gets battered by the wind.
Homeowners that have done their due diligence to make sure that nothing will fall off, get blown away, or topple over will certainly help them sleep better when the winds start to roar and howl. I don’t know what time I dozed off, but at least I don’t think I was kept up till dawn by the strong winds of the past few nights, mostly because the noises that the wind and my home were making weren’t that worrying. If something loose had been clattering about all night long, that would have either kept me up or sent me outside at 3AM in my PJs.
However, we have to take note that even if we do all we can in our power to keep up the maintenance and storm readiness of our homes, there are still acts of God and man that are out of our control. Just as flash floods can suddenly rise, unnaturally strong gusts of wind can still cause damage. One story I can’t forget is how a cousin’s home in Cebu was struck by flying debris from a neighboring high rise building under construction. I forgot the name of the typhoon, but I can’t forget her story of how a fire exit door slammed into their roof in the middle of a particularly stormy night.
Hopefully everyone keeps safe and has peace of mind as we ride out what remains of the inclement weather of the past few days. Those who have the means to help the affected, either locally or in other parts of the country that have suffered terrible floods and even lahar, should also consider helping out.*
