Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Sorry but I have to say something about it...

I am deeply saddened about that Prana girl being lost in Halcon since October 29. But what saddens me more is not the fact that she was found dead this morning (i think they still have to investigate why she was found by the Mangyans wearing only her underwear, and with her things missing), or that the search for her was called to a halt yesterday (good thing the Mangyans pressed on). In my opinion, unless she sought shelter with the Mangyans, and even if she was self-contained, it would take more than a miracle to find her alive after 2 weeks of being out there. Halcon once already claimed a boy's life, because of hypothermia. It rains every day in Halcon. That mountain is considered one of the hardest climbs in the Philippines.

True enough, she was found dead. And i'm sorry for her, sorry for her family and friends, and sorry for those who searched for her.

Still, call me a bad person... and tell me Prana was only human and entitled to mistakes, miscalculations and arrogance... but unless she was insane to start with, I believe that she should have known better than to climb a difficult mountain ALONE. Here is someone who's been trained by a respectable mountaineering org... and yet it seems, respect for nature was not inculcated in her.

I won't be too bad to say, or think, that she deserved what happened to her. But I guess, not knowing her personally allows me to also see that this was not an accident... She was courting disaster by striking on her own.

*~*

Climbing for fun is good. Not being affiliated with any organization isn't bad either. Some even eschew membership in any mountaineering org because they do not want to follow certain norms/rules that an organization upholds (MMS forbids smoking during climbs, and if anyone here go on fun climbs, they'd know that maybe half of those who climb smoke in campsites, even justifying it by saying that smoking keeps them warm).

But being a member of an org has its benefits. Almost always, you'd have to undergo a Basic Mountaineering Course (BMC) where you learn the basics of survival and environment care. You get trained to climb mountains and protect mountains. You get trained to become a mountaineer. More than that, and hopefully, you get taught to RESPECT nature, for its a force you cannot really reckon with.

*~*

I have prayed for Prana. I feel strongly about mountainerring even if i'd never be a really strong climber and backpacker.

But I am praying more that mountaineers all over will at least learn from this. Never underestimate nature... and always have a buddy with you.

It's one thing for mountaineers to be scouring a mountain for a lost, straying or injured you. It's another thing for them to be searching high and low, second-guessing your decisions, because you started out irrationally, and who knows how your mind is actually operating (I'm sorry, but going alone in Halcon? And you're not a Mangyan? it's absurdity kills me)...

*~*

Leovic, that mountaineer who got lost and wasn't found last year, in a mountain i've already forgotten... was trained in Search and Rescue. That implies that, if he was sane, he'd have known what to do. And yet, like what I said, he was not found. Who really knows what other things befell him.

Neptali died in Halcon due to a string of bad luck and lack of information. It also seemed that because they were all cold, and their team was divided, nobody was rational enough to care for Neptali's group and address hypothermia.

A certain Joseph accidentally fell from Durungawan I in Mt. Banahaw last March 2002, supposedly, as he was craning his neck to look down the precipice, a gust of wind just ate him up and carried him down to his death. (At least, it was Buloy's choice to jump)

Not to mention hundreds of accidents.

A little respect for nature, environment and the elements can go a looong way. A little humility can save your life, and allow you the privilege of enjoying the outdoors.


by ~me~ at 4:42 PM ©

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