Sunday marks the first anniversary of Typhoon Ondoy, known elsewhere as Ketsana. In just six hours or so that day, Metro Manila and nearby provinces experienced a month’s worth of rainfall. Flashfloods inundated large tracts of the National Capital Region, especially its eastern portion bordering Laguna de Bay. A week later, another typhoon, Pepeng— Parma elsewhere— dumped even more rain on Luzon, triggering massive flooding and landslides. Both typhoons left over 600 people dead and wrought damage to public works and farms estimated at about P30 billion.

Mariano, D. (2010, September 24). Laguna de Bay in desperate need of rehab. The Manila Times, p. A4.