38
Physicians, testified that “this Aedes aegypti vector came from the environment, which
was brought about by Yolanda.”172 There are also documented cases of Schistosomiasis,
an acute and possibly chronic disease caused by parasitic flatworms that are released
by infected snails during floods.173
Rising temperatures have also led to heat-related illnesses such as heat exhaustion
and heat stroke. The majority of the fisherfolk who participated in the KIIs and
FGDs complained of the intense heat. Among them, Lowell Factor shared that he
has to brave the intense heat and sun even if it causes extreme discomfort and severe
sunburns.174
Extreme weather events have severely affected Filipinos’ mental health.
Most survivors of extreme weather events suffer from psychological distress.
During the Inquiry, Joy Tomes shared that her children were in a state of shock
after Super Typhoon Haiyan (local: Yolanda) and did not want to go home from the
evacuation center because of the trauma.175 Marinel Ubaldo, a survivor of the same
typhoon, narrated:
…We couldn’t also bear the thought of eating fish that may
have fed on the dead bodies of our dead neighbors and the
people we know… As time passed, my father [a fisherman]
suffered from depression. He barely ate and slept. He
couldn’t bear to go fishing anymore and he became suicidal.
Knowing that your family is in that painful situation made things
worse, but I had to remain strong.
Five (5) years after, my nerves still get the best of me whenever I
hear the crash of ocean waves. I get anxious and restless when it
rains because I fear that another Haiyan will happen again. It took
me three years before I was able to go to the ocean again. It’s sad
because the ocean was our childhood friend.176
Climate change has also overwhelmed the Philippines’ public health systems. In
Southern Mindanao, mental health services were exhausted after typhoons.177
172
T.S.N. of the Third Inquiry Hearing dated 29-30 August 2018, at 255-256. Dr. Jonathan Moses
Jadloc, the National Chair of the Climate Change Committee of the Philippine College of Physicians
(PCP) and the Foundation of PCP.
173
Focus Group Discussion, Northern Mindanao, at 45.
174
Lowell Factor, Case Study: Verde Island Passage, at 30.
176
T.S.N. of the Fourth Inquiry Hearing dated 27-28 September 2018, at 8.
177
Focus Group Discussion, Northern Mindanao, at 25.
175
Joy Tomes, Community Dialogue in Tacloban, at 11.
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