Kring Kring Gonzales, mayor-husband survive storm surge in Tacloban City

Former actress and now Tacloban City Councilor Cristina “Kring Kring” Gonzales-Romualdez and her husband, Mayor Alfred Romualdez, were nearly swept away by the storm surge caused by super typhoon “Yolanda.
The former actress, daughter of former matinee idol and congressman Jose Mari Gonzales and Charito Malarky who has Spanish and British descents, recounted her ordeal as soon as media men were able to reach Tacloban City.

The lady councilor at the same time decried allegations that she and her mayor-husband failed to prepare the people for the oncoming super typhoon.
Three days before Yolanda was to hit Tacloban, residents were forewarned and many were evacuated to safe areas, she said.
She recounted that she and children were in the family house facing the Pacific Ocean when Yolanda hit the city.
She told ABS-CBN that around 6 a.m. Friday, they experienced strong winds and heavy rains that uprooted trees near their house.
A few minutes later, water started entering their house, she told the network.
“We were just floating, I was holding on to my kids,” she added.
The tv network quoted Gonzales pointing out that as the water rose, people inside the house had to stand on top of tables to avoid getting swept away by the water.
She said her companions punched holes through the ceiling and to stay alive as the water continued to rise.
“We had to stay inside the cemented area to avoid being pushed into the open sea, because once you get pushed into the open sea, wala na,” the former actress added.
In another interview, Mayor Romualdez said he was in another place when the super typhoon battered Tacloban City.
He said he was caught by the raging waters but scampered to safety.
Romualdez also denied allegations of failure to prepare for the worst of the super typhoon, pointing out that he organized pre-emptive evacuations as early as three days before Yolanda hit the city.
“We were ready. But who can prepare for the storm surge with waves as high as 15 feet, which we never expected,” the mayor stressed.
The lady councilor said that she even had to borrow underwear from other people as they lost their belongings durng the typhoon.
She said her husband wore pants that were believed to have come from the looted Gaisano Shopping Mall in the city.