‘Lando’ puts 21 areas in state of calamity Bulacan may be next due to back flooding in 4 towns
At least 21 areas from Northern Luzon down to Southern Tagalog are now under a state of calamity due to the devastating effect of typhoon “Lando” last weekend, while the province of Bulacan in Central Luzon continues to be plagued by back flooding from Pampanga and Nueva Ecija, national and local disaster authorities reported yesterday.
The latest report of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) showed that apart from the provinces of Pangasinan, Isabela, Cagayan, Aurora, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, and Quirino, 14 municipalities and cities have been declared under a state of calamity.
The 14 areas are Sugpon in Ilocos Sur; Dagupan City in Pangasinan; Ilagan City, Isabela; Cabatuan, Isabela; Tuguegarao City, Cagayan; Baler, Aurora; Calumpit, Bulacan; Arayat, Pampanga; Camiling, Tarlac; Ramos, Tarlac; General Nakar, Quezon; Infanta, Quezon; San Agustin, Isabela; and San Manuel, Isabela province.
Bulacan, one of the hardest-hit provinces in Luzon, is still holding up with the provincial and local governments shouldering the costs of rescue, evacuation, and relief operations.
Bulacan Governor Wilhelmino M. Sy-Alvarado is still studying the possible declaration of a state of calamity in the province, which has already absorbed nearly P1 billion in losses in agriculture, owing largely to flash floods in Hagonoy, Calumpit, Paombong, and Pulilan which rose up to shoulderlevel. Alvarado said 2,101 families or 9,913 persons were still packed in 21 evacuation centers. He said this is now a smaller number compared to the 54,047 families (265,709 persons) displaced from 58 barangays in the four towns submerged in chest-deep or shoulder-deep floods since Monday.
NDRRMC reported the estimated total damage caused by typhoon Lando at 9.5 billion in Regions 1, 2, 3, 4-A, 4-B, 5, and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) as of October 23. This accounts for the 1.268-billion damage in infrastructure and 8.242-billion losses in agriculture.
It was still verifying collated local and provincial reports that put the total death toll from Lando at 58, with 85 more individuals missing.
In Central Luzon, the Regional DRRM reported the damage to infrastructure and agriculture at 7.3 billion. Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Assistant Director for Central Luzon and RDRRMC Chairman Nigel Lontoc said the extent of the damage to agriculture which covered rice, corn, high-value crops, fisheries and livestock caused by severe flooding was estimated at 6.8 billion; while damage cost to infrastructure which covered roads, bridges, and fishery and livestock facilities was pegged at 500 million.
In Nueva Ecija, Governor Aurelio Umali and the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Board) led by Vice-Gov. Jose Gay Padiernos said the cost of damage to agriculture and infrastructure has already run up to 3.6 billion.
The 1st Engineering District of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) reported 59.5 million worth of roads and flood control projects destroyed by the typhoon, while the Provincial Agriculture Office (PAO) said one of the hardest-hit was the rice granary town of Talavera which incurred 200million losses in agriculture.
In Baguio City, Acting Mayor Edison Bilog thanked the people of the city who worked 24/7 as volunteers to help in rescue and relief operations and prevent considerable damage or greater loss of lives. (With reports from Franco G. Regala and Zaldy C. Comanda)