MANILA - When floods caused by tropical storm Ondoy hit his subdivision, actor Jericho Rosales decided to help out the best way he knew - by surfing.

It was about 4 p.m. on September 26 - the day the typhoon hit hardest - when Rosales received news that several people in Loyola Grand Villas (LGV) were already stuck on the upper floors of their homes.

LGV, an upscale subdivision adjacent to La Vista subdivision in Quezon City, is located at the border of Katipunan Avenue and Marikina City.

Earlier, the actor had seen the heavy rains when he woke up and decided to take photos of the swelling Marikina River and to get food for his family, whom he had asked to stay at his house in case of floods in their area.

"Hanggang bubong na yung baha, so pumasok na rin sa village namin. A couple of blocks away from my house, wala na, parang river na 'yong bahay. Oh my God, how can I? There's no way I can get food now na... bahala na," he told abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak in a phone interview.

Rescue

"On my way back to my house, I saw my friend, asked me if I had transport and then he said they needed help kasi some kids were stuck in their houses, some people want to go out kasi nasa second floor na daw silang lahat," he said.

Rosales, an avid surfer since 1999, rushed home to get his surfboards and some basketballs, then donned his vest, board shorts, and a rash guard.

Lying flat on his surfboard and paddling over the flood waters, he and his friends were able to help some villagers and neighborhood dogs get to higher ground.

"'Yong iba, sumakay sa surfboard ko, especially the little ones. The others, hinila-hila ko lang habang nagpapaddle ako. Yung iba nilalagay namin sa floating na sofas. All in all, all the villagers, we helped a lot. Some of them didn't want to go down [from their houses]. It was more of you know, how to bring them down from their houses," he said.

Rosales was reportedly part of a team of volunteer rescuers from LGV, including actor Raymart Santiago.

In all, he said, he was able to rescue 2 dogs, an old woman, a lady, and a child. Rescued villagers, he said, were brought to higher ground within the village.

Kind-hearted neighbors reportedly fed the victims food and water, and opened their doors to neigbors whom they had never even met before. "It was a good scene," Rosales said.

Fear and fatigue

From 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Rosales and the volunteers had paddled back and forth through the cold waters, trying to rescue LGV residents.

He said a rescue squad from the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) came at about 8 p.m., equipped with floatation devices and a jet ski.

"Siguro mga about 7p.m. it was just too cold na, I couldn't do it anymore. I had to go home and get out and changed my wetsuit. After that, I tried to go out again to help put up a line, a safety line para sa mga rescuers, para may guide sila dun [papunta] sa mataas na street," Rosales said.

Rosales said he felt scared during the 5-hour rescue operation because "it was not an easy scene."

He and his friends were worried over loose electrical lines that could lead to electrocution, or snakes that were said to be slithering underwater.

The waters were extremely cold, hastening hypothermia, and there was limited visibility due to power outages and heavy rains.

The actor was acutely conscious of the possibility that he could be pulled by the undertow.

Rosales had only been living in the subdivision for nearly a year, and had difficulty navigating through the area that was already submerged in about 8 to 10 feet of muddy water.

"You really have to pray for extra strength. It was like a scene from 'Titanic' [the film]. I was paddling through the village, calling out to people, asking them if they need help. And hindi ko kabisado yung streets, so I was actually pretty careful kasi baka matangay ako, madala ng river," he told abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak.

Rosales, fatigued from a previous excursion, also had to work the next day. On Sunday, September 27, he and his ABS-CBN co-stars sang in the ASAP '09 variety show.

The aftermath

A day after the storm, Rosales went around his village and surrounding communities near the Tumana Bridge to assess the damage brought by tropical storm Ondoy.

He likened what he saw to scenes of the film "I Am Legend", set in the damaged and abandoned streets of New York after an infectious disease wiped out the world population and created packs of rabid zombies.

"Grabe talaga. A lot of people gumiba 'yong bahay nila. You know, meron pa akong nakitang cars na wala sa pwesto hanggang ngayon. Sira. Tapos I'm sure gamit nila sira. If you're saying my village, siyempre medyo comfortable 'yon. Kasi babaha[in] lang talaga yung mga gamit nila," Rosales said.

His family's and friends' homes around Metro Manila were also damaged in the floods.

His family in Marikina, one of the areas hardest hit by the typhoon, said waters reached up to their ceiling. His sister's house was waist-deep in mud, while his friends' homes were also damaged.

The actor's family temporarily took shelter at his LGV house, which was remarkably untouched and dry. Water and electricty were cut off all over the village.

Rosales said he had previously lived in another townhouse in LGV, located in the area where he and the volunteers conducted rescue operations.

"If we still lived there, I'm sure I'm also a [typhoon] victim right now," he said in Filipino.

Response

Several celebrities who decided to help out in rescue efforts received praise online.

Online users on Twitter and Facebook commended Rosales, Gerald Anderson, and Richard Guiterrez for helping out some victims of Typhoon Ondoy by posting photos of the actors in action.

These "celebrity" rescue efforts were conducted in lieu of the rescue and relief operations of the Philippine military, police, MMDA, NDCC and its attached agencies, local government units, the Philippine Red Cross, and other civilian volunteers.

Despite the glowing praises he received for his efforts in LGV, Rosales refuses to take any credit.

"It's nothing, for me. Any guy can do that. I mean, pag nandun ka na eh. I mean, what can we do? I couldn't help it. And parang, I want to help some more," he said.

Rosales and his friends have actively helped out in ABS-CBN's Sagip Kapamilya Foundation, the company's disaster relief agency.

He and his fellow musicians are also planning on launching a fund-raising concert for the benefit of typhoon victims.

Rosales, the vocalist and guitarist of the band "Jeans", said the concert would "soothe the souls" of those traumatized by the disaster, and would help raise funds for relief efforts.

He and his friends also plan to launch a benefit concert in November or December for the people of Marikina, where he grew up.

He also suggested that the government should invest in strengthening the country's rescue and relief systems, including flood prevention and infrastructure.

As a surfer, he said he has taken on environmental advocacies like caring for the sea, reefs, and all animals.

If there is anything the government and the public should learn from the disaster brought on by Typhoon Ondoy, Rosales said it is this: "Prevention is everything. And it all boils down to one thing. Take care of mother nature. The environment is important." Report by Kristine Servando, abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak. Photos sent to ABS-CBN News.