Hundreds missing as floods, landslide cut off villages

Typhoon “Pablo” left 238 persons dead, 61 injured and hundreds  missing, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) .

NDRRMC executive director Benito Ramos said that as of 1 p.m. yesterday, the NDRRMC recorded 44,954 families or 213, 502 persons affected in 115 municipalities, 14 cities and 18 provinces of Regions 7, 8, 10, 11 and CARAGA.

Of these affected population, 36,142 families or 169,907 persons were in the 377 evacuation centers.

The NDRRMC, said Ramos, also received reports of 5,004 stranded passengers, 562 rolling cargoes, 90 vessels and 22 motor bancas as of 1 p.m. yesterday in ports all over the country.

Meanwhile, five bridges and nine roads were reportedly damaged in the said regions. 

Ramos said the three hardest hit provinces are Davao Oriental, Compostela Valley and Surigao Del Sur.

Most of the fatalities were either hit by fallen trees or drowned.

Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Manuel 'Mar' Roxas II on Wednesday said there were 49 fatalities in a mudslide in the town of New Bataan in Compostela Valley province while 33 were killed in Davao Oriental.

RELIEF OPERATIONS

President Aquino, meanwhile, assured there are sufficient funds from which regions affected by the typhoon may get funds for the “necessary expenses and emergency infrastructures.”

He said Budget Secretary Florencio Abad already informed him that “there is at least P8-billion ready to take care of all the necessary expenses here and also in the necessary emergency infrastructure – ‘yung mga roads that were closed, etcetera, kung may damages. There is sufficient fund at this point in time,” he said.

The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said that as of Wednesday noon, 'Pablo' was located at 135km northeast of Puerto Princesa City.

The typhoon's wind strength slightly weakened from 130 kilometer per hour (kph) to 120 kph while its gustiness decreased from 160 kph to 150 kph.

Typhoon Pablo slowed down its northwest movement from 24 kph to 19kph and expected to be at 470km west of Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro by Thursday morning and will be at 610km west of Dagupan City, Pangasinan by Friday morning.

Pagasa placed the rest of the Palawan under public storm warning signal number 2.

WV SPARED

Meanwhile, typhoon Pablo  failed to significantly affect Western Visayas despite the December 4 Public Storm Warning Signal No. 3 and No. 2 raised in the provinces of the region.

As of yesterday morning, the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) reported no casualty, injured, or affected families caused by “Pablo’s” onslaught as it traversed near the region Tuesday night.

Those who went on pre-emptive evacuation Tuesday were allowed to go home yesterday morning despite.

RDRRMC reported that 715 families or 3,252 individuals living in coastal areas sought shelters in the different evacuation centers in the region.

In Iloilo, residents of two coastal barangays in Miag-ao town and one village in Tigbauan town were evacuated but returned home early morning yesterday.

Residents of eight villages in Iloilo City who went on voluntarily evacuation at the different schools, barangay halls and gym, and churches, also returned home around 8 a.m. yesterday.

In Guimaras province, eight barangays from four towns also returned home after the weather stabilized.

NEGROS OCCIDENTAL

In Negros Occidental, almost 2,900 residents from 10 towns and cities were also evacuated, and no fatality or major damage to infrastructure was reported in the province.

Except for intermittent heavy rains and strong winds, the typhoon had minimal effect to the province.

Forty-three houses were destroyed while 304 were damaged.

In Hinoba-an, the southernmost town of the province, 25 houses were destroyed while 291 were damaged. The five affected villages are Barangays 1, 2, Asia, Alim and Bacuyangan. In the neighboring Sipalay City, one house was destroyed and nine others damaged.

In La Carlota City, 16 houses in Barangay Batuan and a day care center in Barangay Yubo were destroyed. In Murcia town, a house was destroyed while  two were damaged. One house each was damaged in Pulupandan and Pontevedra towns.

Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. said he is again grateful that the Negros Occidental has been spared from a calamity.

“Our prayers were answered. We should be thankful, prayerful. Let’s be prepared all the time,” he said in a radio interview.

In the past year, Negros Occidental sustained only minimal effects from Typhoon Sendong and the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that  both  devastated major towns and cities in Negros Oriental.

The Negros Occidental Social Welfare and Development Office reported Wednesday morning that of the 2,875 people evacuated in Negros Occidental, 972 were from five barangays in San Carlos City and 59, from three barangays in Escalante City in northern Negros, and 24, from neighboring Don Salvador Benedicto.

In southern Negros, 28 persons in Bago City also sought shelter; Pulupandan, 336, from six barangays; Pontevedra, 644,  four barangays;  Isabela, 359, two barangays; Kabankalan City, 222, two barangays; Sipalay, 64,  four barangays; and Hinoba-an, 56, two barangays.  

The provincial government provided 100 food packs to affected residents in Kabankalan, Sipalay and Hinoba-an. Escalante City, Pulupandan and Pontevedra towns also provided food assistance to the evacuees in their respective areas.

BACK TO NORMAL

Before noon yesterday, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) 6 declared that operations of sea vessels are back to normal, except those vessels travelling to and from Antique and areas were public storm warning signal was still up.

As of the 11 a.m. weather bulletin yesterday, PSWS No. 1 was still up in Antique province.

PCG-WV commander Commodore Athelo Ybañez said that Roll On-Roll Off vessels from Caticlan in Malay, Aklan bound to Mindoro were not allowed to sail.

Meanwhile, the 609 passengers of 2Go Shipping who were stranded for nearly 3 days at the Iloilo Port terminal were already permitted to travel to Bacolod City.

Work in public and private offices resumed as of yesterday morning while classes in the elementary and secondary levels remained suspended.* Jennifer Ponsaran-Rendon/ Nanette Guadalquiver with AFP/PNA