By: Jennifer P. Rendon
Andrea de Asis was hoping against hope that her son survived the wrath of Typhoon Ursula following the death of her husband and two children on Dec 25, 2019.
It was a long shot but Andrea, an overseas Filipino worker (OFW), was fervently hoping her wish and prayer would be granted.
But it looks like fate had other plans, as her son, Roel “Moymoy” de Asis, 12, was also found dead. His body was found snagged in bamboo twigs at a river in Batad town morning of Dec. 29, 2019.
Andrea, 36, from Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo, had earlier cancelled her trip back to Kuwait following the tragic incident that claimed the lives of her family.
She was supposed to fly back to Kuwait on Dec. 26 but returned to Iloilo to attend to the burial of her husband Roel de Asis and their two other children, all of whom perished as Typhoon Ursula battered Batad town, her husband’s hometown.
The body of Roel, 41, their children Rosa Mae “Meme” de Asis, 15, and Rhiana “YanYan” de Asis, 3, were found hours after they were swept by a flash flood at Barangay Pasayan, Batad while they and several relatives tried to evacuate.
Two of their relatives, Elgie “Angga” de Asis and Ronilo “Dagul” Evangelio, both 12 years old, also died of drowning. Their bodies were recovered several hours later.
But Roel’s sister, Alma de Asis and another relative identified as Boots survived.
Andrea and Roel, who worked as a security guard, have five children.
Roel, along with three kids, went to Batad on Dec. 15 following the death of his father three days before the incident.
Meanwhile, another missing person in Passi City, Iloilo, was also found.
The body of Jerald Maming, 26, was found on Saturday morning after he drowned 6:30 p.m. of Dec. 25.
Barangay officials found Maming’s body near the river at Barangay Sarapan.
A taxi driver, Maming crossed the river on a bamboo raft when the rope attached to the other side of the river snapped
Records from the Office of Civil Defense 6 (OCD-6) revealed that four other persons remain missing – three in Iloilo and one in Aklan.
