TYPHOON DINDO: BICOL PLACED UNDER STATE OF CALAMITY
BICOL, May 19, 2004 (STAR) By Marichu Villanueva - President Arroyo placed the Bicol Region and three nearby provinces yesterday under a state of calamity in the wake of the devastation wreaked by Typhoon "Dindo," which battered the region earlier this week.Bicol — with its five provinces of Catanduanes, Albay, Sorsogon, Camarines Sur and Camarines Norte — and the nearby provinces of Masbate, Northern Samar and Eastern Samar were hardest hit by the typhoon, which packed winds of 170 kilometers per hour and gusts of up to 205 kph.
The President told reporters yesterday she would fly to the disaster sites to personally look into the condition of the residents there as soon as the weather clears up.
She pointed out that any area placed under a state of calamity automatically allows the local government unit (LGU) concerned to release five percent of its budget to address the immediate needs of its constituents.
Mrs. Arroyo said that in the meantime, the regional disaster coordinating councils in the affected regions, through their respective LGUs, will further evaluate the damage done by the typhoon to houses, crops, public facilities and installations.
"Therefore, national government will come in only if the five percent of the LGU (budget) is insufficient to address the calamity," she said.
The President made the declaration after she met yesterday with members of the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC), chaired by Defense Secretary Eduardo Ermita.
The NDCC reported there was only one typhoon-related casualty.
"Our disaster response organizations and mechanisms are in place in both the local and national levels," Mrs. Arroyo said.
The President, along with Executive Secretary Alberto Romulo, called for the NDCC’s update on the casualty report and damage assessment in the Bicol Region and Eastern Visayas.
The reports on the damage done by typhoon Dindo were done by Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Corazon Soliman, Agriculture Secretary Luis Lorenzo Jr. and Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza.
"It is my fervent prayer that damage to lives and properties will be mitigated through our concerned efforts," Mrs. Arroyo said. "Other areas are continually being assessed and appropriate action will be taken as soon as we have a clear picture of the damage."
The NDCC estimates that the damage to agriculture and infrastructure in the two regions can hit P71.4 million. Damage to agriculture, according to the council, was at P30 million since Bicol is a key coconut-producing area.
Soliman told the President they put up 25 evacuation centers in the affected areas, but have closed down nine of them since residents have gone back to their homes after the typhoon passed through the area.
"We’re talking of 11,952 families in the 16 evacuation centers as of now in Bicol, mainly in Sorsogon, Camarines Sur and in Catanduanes," she said.
Soliman said over 4,000 people stranded at various ports in the two regions were fed in the DSWD’s "community kitchen" facilities in coordination wit the Philippine Ports Authority and the Office of Civil Defense (OCD).
Mendoza, for his part, said the typhoon affected 11 flights involving small planes to and from the Bicol Region, stranding thousands of commuters.
"At 12:30 today, all operations of all transport modes are back to normal," he said. "Stranded passengers will be cleared early tomorrow."
Lorenzo, on the other hand, assured the President the reported damage to crops was not that serious, since the affected provinces were in the middle of the planting season. He explained that rice and corn farmers were still preparing their farmlands for planting.
"There was little damage to banana, abaca products, which we will assess in the soonest time," he said.
Landslides set off by typhoon Dindo have obliterated three villages in the coastal town of Gigmoto, Catanduanes and rendered 700 families homeless since Sunday but there were no immediate reports of casualties, officials said.
Rescuers waited for the weather to clear to airlift food and relief teams to Gigmoto, and strong winds and rains have cut communication with officials in the area. A regional police official, Chief Superintendent Jaime Lasar, said information about conditions there was being relayed by officials from nearby towns. Some relief teams with food packages were trying to reach the area by foot and boat, he said.
Except for Naga City in Camarines Sur, all other areas in Bicol do not have electricity as of late yesterday.
Dindo is the fourth typhoon to hit the archipelago this year and has stranded more than 15,000 people after authorities halted sea travel to prevent accidents.
OCD regional director Arnel Capili said authorities recovered the body of Marlon John Oliver of Pili, Camarines Sur, who drowned when he tried to swim across the Anayan River. Roger Cusa of Naga City is still missing after he tried to brave the strong currents of the Bicol River.
Capili said nine fishermen from two fishing boats, m/v Jamel Vergel and m/v Lilian, are still missing. Only Jose Tayo, 68, is still missing after Jamel Vergel capsized off Mercedes, Camarines Norte. His companions Joey Ibona, 25; Eduardo Lajara, 49; and Eduardo Cabanilla, 17, were rescued by the Coast Guard and a team from the Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council.
Crew members of m/v Lilian include Danilo Abiog, Carlito Abiog, Abner Orolfo, Andy Rodriguez, Romeo Rodriguez, Amador Velasco and Tony Vicente, according to Capili. Their vessel was last seen off Barangay Magisoc in Mercedes.
Capili said they have sent a team from the Special Warfare Action Group to find the missing fishermen.
Fourteen people were injured, one critically, in highway accidents caused by poor visibility in Pamplona, Cagayan Valley and Cauayan City, Isabela.
Thirteen crewmen of m/v Green Apple, which was laden with beer cargo, were rescued by villagers after it ran aground near Magallanes, Sorsogon.
At least 18 towns in Camarines Sur, Camarines Norte and Albay are still under waist-deep water as of yesterday, the OCD said.
Coast Guard chief Vice Adm. Arturo Gosingan has suspended yesterday afternoon all voyages of inter-island vessels to major ports to prevent "a repeat of past sea tragedies" but Lt. Cmdr. Nelson Torre, who is based in Matnog, Sorsogon, has allowed the resumption of the ferry service from Matnog to Allen, Samar, where some 7,400 commuters had been stranded.
Gosingan said the Coast Guard usually allows big inter-island vessels to sail in some ports of the country that are not affected by the typhoon, but this time the agency is more cautious.
He added that small inter-island ferries will definitely not be allowed to sail until the weather permits.
A total of 20 domestic flights were canceled and three flights delayed during the past two days due to typhoon Dindo, according to the Manila International Airport Authority.
The canceled flights were bound for Marinduque, Masbate, Virac in Catanduanes, Caticlan, Kalibo and Legazpi.
The storm did not affect the international flights.
The Philippines is hit by 17 to 20 typhoons each year. The most destructive in recent times was Thelma, which struck Leyte island in November 1991 and unleashed massive floods in Ormoc City that drowned about 5,000 people. — With Jaime Laude, Celso Amo, Nestor Etolle, Cet Dematera, Rainier Allan Ronda, Sandy Araneta, AFP
Reported by: Sol Jose Vanzi
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