We saw Yolanda's destruction, Donaire's TKO win coming

We saw Yolanda's destruction, 
Donaire's TKO win coming 

"When any calamity has been suffered the first thing to be remembered is, how much has been escaped."
SAMUEL JOHNSON 

By Alex P. Vidal

We had been forewarned about the destruction super typhoon "Yolanda" would bring once it landed in Central Visayas at least four days earlier. We shouldn't have been caught by surprise. But we were. The horrowing death toll and unimaginable damage on property--commercial and agricultural--were horrific, to say the least. Indeed, it was the worst natural calamity ever recorded in world history.
Ilonggos were alerted and prepared as early as November 4 when weather forecast billed the howler as "the strongest ever" and shouldn't be underestimated. But death for hundreds of unprepared Visayans in Tacloban, Ormoc, Cebu, and Iloilo came like a thief in the night. We join those who lost their family members and houses as well as livelihood in their moments of grief and sorrow.
We doff our hats off to our government leaders-- governors, mayors, barangay officials, the PNP and army--who quickly responded to the calamity by marshaling the state equipment and resources. We can't bring back the lives of those who perished while trying to flee from strong winds and flashfloods when "Yolanda" unleashed its deadly force last November 8, but because of our alert and diligent government officials and disaster management councils, many lives have been saved.

DESTRUCTION

Like "Yolanda's" destruction, we also anticipated the ugly ending of the verbally abusive Armenian-Australian pugilist Vic "The Bull" Darchinyan (39-6, 28 KOs) who was toppled in the 9th round by a solid left hook uncorked by Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire Jr. in Corpus Christi, Texas last November 10.
While smarting from the onslaught of "Yolanda", many Filipinos did not miss the fight which was considered to be more exciting compared to the forthcoming duel between Manny Pacquiao and Brandon "Bam Bam" Rios in Macau on Nov. 24. 
It was a very important fight not only for Donaire (32-2, 21 KOs) who was trying to recover from the methodical beating he experienced from Guillermo Rigondeaux last April 13 in a foiled bid to pocket the WBO super bantamweight title, but for the entire nation searching for hero in sports amid back-to-back calamities (from 7.2 earthquake to the super typhoon "Yolanda").

SPIRITS

Donaire's scintillating TKO win lifted the spirits of all Filipinos who felt insulted by Darchinyan's arrogance and foul language. Donaire's stoppage victory will probably silence him and bring him to his senses that Filipino fighters are world class and brave in heart and spirit and should not be underestimated.
After his TKO win over Darchinyan, Donaire, who is still crownless despite the big victory, issued the following message on his Facebook page: "It wasnt MY win tonight, it was the PHILIPPINES win. We are strong and we have faith. Thank you Lord for keeping me safe, giving me a sound mind, helping me see what needed to be done. Thank you to the Archangels and especially all the fans and Filipinos who watched despite the typhoon. I have alot of work still to do but first I need to get the cheek xrayed for fracture and rest. God Bless!"
During his post fight interview, Donaire stated “When he hit me in my cheek, it felt like he broke my cheek, so part of my mind was ‘Is this it for me? Should I keep going?’ but I put my mind and heart into it and said ‘You know what? I will never, ever quit.’”
Donaire said he is looking for a rematch with Rigondeaux (12-0, 8 KOs) who will face Joseph Agbeko on December 7 for WBA super bantamweight title. Agbeko had once repulsed the talkative Darchinyan on points.