A Survivor’s Story

Advocacies, Military 645 comments

Lieutenant Colonel Fermin Carangan is the Commanding Officer of TOG 8, the Air Force unit tasked to provide air support for the islands of Samar and Leyte. On the morning of Friday, November 8, he and his troops were in their office near the Tacloban Airport on red alert, having been informed of an incoming Super-Storm named Haiyan (local name: Yolanda). Here’s how he narrated his ordeal to Lt Col Allan Taguba, as Haiyan unleashed her fury on the city of Tacloban on that fateful Friday morning.

We were out of the office at 6 am Friday observing. Winds brought by Yolanda were already strong around that time. We (the Air Force troops in Tacloban) were prepared for the possibility of rescue missions days before the expected landfall of Yolanda. Just before 7 am, the rains started to pour, so we took shelter.

2h28

Around the same time, we noticed that water was slowly entering our office, so we went out again. Then suddenly, we saw that the water was getting higher and higher, until we were forced to get up the ceilings of the building. We had to bore holes on the ceiling just to get up there, and I was the last one up.

Suddenly the building collapsed and I saw my men falling into the surging water and very strong winds. There was also no more roof on top of the building. I was able to hold on to a piece of wood – a truss which I forcibly removed just before I was taken by waves and the strong current.

More damage in Tacloban

I didn’t notice that my two junior officers were now gone. Both were fresh graduates from the PMA, and they were beside me before we were swallowed by the water. Then I saw one of my soldiers trying to hold on to an uncollapsed wall of another destroyed building. I tried to reach for him but the current was too strong and there was confusion and hysteria.

I was going farther and farther out into the sea and all I saw were tips of coconut trees starting to disappear into the swelling water. Suddenly, I saw a child hugging tightly to a floating coconut tree. By a stroke of luck, the current led me to the child, and I was able to pluck him from his very unfortunate situation. He then held on to the piece of wood I was myself holding on to. Then we floated until we were out there in the middle of nowhere.

This photo was taken as the storm neared Leyte.

At sea, we went through another hell. We were slapped by waves, great big waves from all directions. We were also toyed by swirling winds. And we couldn’t help but drink a lot of salt water. I was now getting so tired. And so was Miguel (the boy’s name). He was just 7 years old. Too young to die, I thought. I thought of my family. I prayed to God to take care of my wife and kids. I thought I’ve done to them what every father could – that is, to take good care of them.

I also thought of my men. Days before, I had told them to ensure the safety of their families, especially those in Tacloban since the city could be hit hard and everyone of us would be busy in the rescue missions after Yolanda. They might not have time to check on their families during the rescue. Then I thought of the two new graduates of PMA 2013. I thought that if something happened to me, at least I had been able to give professional and honorable service for a time. And that I’ve done enough since graduation. These two young guys were just starting and still have a very bright future ahead.

2h13

Then I looked at Miguel. He was trembling hard due to the cold. His very young body could not just cope up with the elements. He said, “Kuya, I will sleep now. I’m so tired already.” Then I thought, maybe I survived because of this child. Without him I could have given up. Maybe he’s the reason I’m still alive because God wants me to make sure this child will live. I shouted at Miguel’s ears: “Don’t sleep! You can do it. Look, we are near land already.” Then I pointed at what I thought was another wall of swell, just to lift the spirit of Miguel. And then I realized that it was indeed the shoreline!! I thought there really is a Powerful Being!

The two survived Storm Haiyan and the rough seas between Leyte and Samar during the onslaught of the typhoon. They floated around the bay near Tacloban airport and were eventually rescued along the shorelines of Basey, Samar at around 1pm the same day. They had been floating for around 6 hours before they were rescued. Basey and Tacloban are separated by the San Pablo and San Pedro Bay. The devastation they saw along the Basey shoreline is another story worth telling. Some of Lt Col Carangan’s men are still missing. These men were supposed to take part in the relief and rescue operations for Leyte and Samar. Alas, it turned out that they too would be the very victims to Haiyan’s wrath.

For more stories on Super-Typhoon Yolanda, pls visit:

(Photos courtesy of AFP, Reuters)

645 comments

  1. This is heroism at its finest. Let us know if you have any info on the 7year-old survivor Miguel or Lt. Carangan. and where we can reach him. Hope Miguel is united with his family or relatives. Would like to help in our own little way for him to cope with his traumatic experience so early in life. I salute Lt. Col. Fermin Carangan! Thanks for sharing their story.

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    2. as i read the story..i couldn’t help but shed tears..imagining the situation of that child as well as many others…i will continue praying for all those victims and wish that all dirty politicians would vanish there and not all those innocent people. God forgive me, but this is my initial reaction and i don’t want to hide that emotion.

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  4. God bless philippines and the people who died. and also those who are alive but facing so many problems. Our prayers be with you all.

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  8. Quite a very moving account of man’s struggle versus nature. This reminds me of Ernest Hemingway’s story I read a long time ago about the old man and the sea. The conflict between man against nature have swelled or increased due to climate change brought about by mankind’s excesses and nature’s response (in reference to your blog on climate change) . I have also read several survival stories in Readers Digest but I can relate to this one having worked and lived in Tacloban before. Thank you for sharing with us this survival story. I wonder if the 2 new PMA graduates survived. Perhaps they too have a story to tell.

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  9. a salute to you,Sir. what a courageous act and faith to survive! How is Miguel now? Was he reunited with his parents? GOD BLESS YOU AND MIGUEL!

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  14. My GRAND salute to you sir for your passion and advocacy to serve. You are one among the few living heroes of our country.
    GOD BLESS YOU and MICHAEL….

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  21. God bless them. Am praying for their souls. & for the recovery of Col Carangan. Am so proud to share this on my FB too. More power & God bless!

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      1. St Michael saved miguel & the col. 😇 i agree & it is not too late to ensure such.👍 hello chay! ikaw pala & i like your profile! 😄 regards to the family! Mabuhay ka & God bless!

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  23. We praise and thank God for protecting and keeping him and Miguel alive. The ordeal they have gone through in the middle of a monstrous sea is beyond imagination. We pray for Miguel, for his family. We pray for Lt. Col. Carangan, a hero.

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  24. You are very courageous sir.. We thank the Lord for His mercy with you and Miguel. You are a living witness of His miracle..God be with us always..

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  25. Sir, you are an epitome of a true soldier both to God and your country. I salute you for not forgetting your role amidst a life-threatening situation. God bless you and the people working to help the victims of Yolanda.

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  35. i did experience floating in the ocean with only our capsized banca as “ride” for hours, and its hell, what more for a simple tree trunk, thank you colonel for not letting go of the kid, a snappy salute for you.

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  36. I am a mother of two boys and just the thought of losing any of them is already unbearable. How much more to those who really experienced this tragedy? May the Lord heal the pains and sufferings of the young boy who survived together with the other survivors. Secondly, I salute you Officer Carangan for the bravery and compassion you have shown. I pray that the souls of those officers, who are supposed to do the rescue missions but lost their own lives instead, may rest in peace. Lastly, to those bereaved families and survivors, you are in our prayers. Keep the faith, stay strong and help is on the way.

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      1. Opo sir. We will do our best. Last night i have personally packed two boxes of clothes already. I have also coordinated with my friends to do the same. I learned that TO GO offers free shipment for relief goods. May i know po the fastest and best way to ship our donations? Through Red Cross and DSWD po ba?

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  37. You still have a mission, Sir. Maybe that is why you survived. Live a meaningful life ….. for your country and for the glory of God. Mabuhay!

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  38. Pingback: A Survivor’s Story | Marnille Umawing

  39. sir, were you able to fly through the province and see the landscape? are the roads from tacloban to dagami and burauen leyte already passable? my families were there. I lost contact for 3 days now. salamat po

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    1. the roads are now passable. though confusion still reigns with the lack of electricity, the lack of food and water, the lack of medicine. but help is pouring in. just like in bohol, the first 2-3 days were bitter, panic-stricken. a lot of finger-pointing. but in time, nerves will calm down. the people will start to come together and help. we are a resilient people.

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    1. thanks, ronnel. the least we can do is to make other people aware of their ordeal, that people may sympathize, as well as prepare better for the next one. hope you’re ready for zorayda there.

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  44. Sir, you deserve a big, big salute! Thank you so much..You are indeed a living hero, worthy of emulation. Hope and pray that the three airmen are alive and safe. May the Almighty God bless you more and may your tribe increase. My son is also an air force officer, he’s in Subic now.:) ❤

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  46. God bless you colonel for your heroism. Praying for the safety of your family and the soldiers missing under your command. I hope you will find them safe. Can you tell us more of Miguel?. He is probably your angel.

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  47. Sir thank you for posting this. But please check the note in your link kasi it was written there that “LTC Allan Taguba the CO, CASF 8”, though he is not. LTC Taguba wrote the story of LTC Carangan. Please check it out because this might cause adverse reaction from LTC Taguba’s family. Thank you. I was one of those who first read the story of LTC Carangan as written by LTC Taguba. I had goosebumps and I salute LTC Carangan for his inner strength to conquer a different kind of ordeal. Inspiring. Sana tularan ng iba.

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    1. yes, jelenne. i tried to correct that but my limited computer savvy can no longer change the original release. when i read the account, i thought it was allan himself who suffered the ordeal. someone called me to correct that. i was able to correct the blog itself, but the link continues to show the first release. the text however has been checked.

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  48. Inspiring story from a survivor of the recent ‪#‎STYolanda‬… I can’t help not to remember the movie “The Impossible (2012) Noami Watts” from this story… Hope Miguel is reunited with his family now and/or somebody taking care of him. Thank you for helping our kababayan. God bless po!

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  49. Thank you for the story. I salute you, officer and all our soldiers who honestly do their job.
    It is true that sometimes, we are placed in the path to save others or be a blessing to others. And most other times too, we are are blessed because we try to help others. Perhaps, we end up being more blessed by helping others.

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  50. There’s a hero in everyone of us, it will only come out during times of peril to do what must be done in order to survive, save or even succeed the enormous and overwhelming task ahead of us. The important thing is we never lose hope, we keep our head above water and finally the faith we have, to call his name at the face of
    death. I always believe everything happens for a reason and before you know it, we stand tall in front of this challenges.

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