Yearender: The good and the bad of 2008
The year 2008 will forever be etched in the minds and hearts of Western Visayas residents where they faced one of the worst tragedies that tested their resiliency, compassion and faith.
Typhoon "Frank" struck the region on June 21 with a fury never seen before by residents in previous storms leaving behind unprecedented death and destruction.
The typhoon triggered the worst flooding seen in the region leaving at least 284 dead and 156 injured. But the death final toll could still be higher with many more still missing and presumed dead.
At least 336,449 families or 1.68 million residents of Western Visayas were affected by the calamity, according to disaster management agencies.
At the height of the flooding, thousands climbed over rooftops and on tree branches to escape the rampaging waters. The flooding spared no one, from poor settlers along riverbanks and creeks to middle and upper middle class families in posh subdivisions.
Victims are still recovering from the devastation and horror of the tragedy with officials expecting years of rehabilitation programs and projects to restore normalcy.
Heroism
Amid the pain and loss, the disaster also brought out the compassion and heroism among the common folk.
Rodney Berdin, 13, was honored during the State of the Nation Address (Sona) in Congress on July 28 for saving his mother and two siblings in Barangay Rumbang in Belison town, Antique, after floodwaters swept away their house.
A group of businessmen and professionals in Iloilo City rescued trapped residents on rooftops and trees by riding on their jet skis at the height f the flooding.
Many others volunteered to pluck residents from flooded communities and in taking care of the homeless in evacuation centers.
Sea disasters
The year 2008 was also marked by sea disasters in Western Visayas that left many fatalities.
At the height of typhoon Frank, at least seven ships and motor bancas sank in the region.
The cargo ship M/V Lake Paoay operated by the Semirara Mining Company and carrying 5,000 metric tons of coal sank off the coast of Carles town in Iloilo. Five crew members died.
The M/V Ocean Papa also sank off the coast of Culasi in Antique on June 21. Two of its crew, including ship captain Carlo Kho, died, while two others remain missing.
The ship's cargo of 16 metric tons of the toxic substance toluene di-isocyanate (TDI) placed in 80 drums remain missing even after more than a month of search operations.
Twelve persons died in November after the passenger boat M/B Rollie IV sank off Concepcion town in Iloilo. This month, a crew member of the the cargo ship M/V Maria Lourdes capsized and sank between the islands of Sibay and Panagatan near Caluya town in Antique.
Permanently silenced
The year was also tragic for journalists after Capiz broadcaster Martin Roxas was gunned down after he left his radio station in Roxas City.
Roxas, program director of the dyVR of Radio Mindanao Network (RMN) and host of the station's "Targetanay sa Udto" noontime program, was the first Capiz journalist to be murdered.
His case remains unsolved even as police have filed murder cases against the two suspected gunmen.
But hope has been rekindled this year in the cases of murdered Aklan broadcasters Rolando Ureta and Herson "Boy" Hinolan after the Supreme Court ordered their cases to be transferred to Cebu City. Monthly hearings have been held at the Cebu Regional Trial Court.
Land disputes
The year also brought to the hilt the land ownership problem of Boracay Island.
Several persons were injured and a fire engulfed commercial stalls in November after court sheriffs implemented a demolition order on a disputed lot in Barangay Manoc-Manoc.
A resort operated by an Australian national and his Filipino wife was forcibly taken over by the owner of the lot and the former sub-lessee of the resort operator. The impasse remains unsolved after courts have failed to resolve the dispute.
The land titling controversy over prized lots on the island has been intensified by the Supreme Court rulings recognizing that most of the 1,032-hectare island-resort is public land with 60 percent classified as alienable and disposable.
Some land claimants and occupants have protested the ruling fearing the loss of their properties and investments. But the government has assured that legal occupants will be protected.
Order and a stop of unregulated development will hopefully come to the world famous resort after the Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) was unveiled by the Department of Tourism in December.
Hero of the environment
The year also brought fame to Iloilo-based scientist Jurgenne Primavera who was named by Time magazine as among the "Heroes of the Environment" for her advocacy in sustainable fish-farming in order to protect the mangrove forests.
Other major strides in protecting the environment were also made including the Western Visayas Renewable Energy Congress which highlighted the availability of renewable sources of energy in the region and investments of independent power producers.
In December, the Asea One Power Corp. announced that it will invest in a P3-billion project to put up power plants on Panay and Guimaras producing a total of 25 megawatts by converting wastes to energy.
This was welcomed renewable energy advocates who are against the construction of two coal plants in Iloilo.