Those of us in Metro Manila and Calabarzon were spared from Supertyphoon "Rolly's" worst fury, through what many believe was yet another proof of prayer power. But make no mistake: Rolly badly debilitated the Bicol Region with maximum sustained winds of 225 kilometers per hour and gusts well exceeding 300 kph, making it the most powerful typhoon in the country this year, and indeed the world. Along with wide and heavy damage to homes, properties, and crops, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) counted 59 power transmission towers downed or damaged by Rolly when it hit on Nov. 1.