No final death toll for Yolanda

Almost two years after super typhoon Yolanda devastated central parts of the country, the casualty count has not yet been finalized.

The government is still in the middle of counting and verifying the deaths caused by the disaster in November 2013, according to a Palace official.

“Yes, of course the President is interested. However, there are processes that we have to follow,” Deputy presidential spokeswoman Abigail Valte told reporters in the Palace when asked if the President was interested in knowing the true casualty count.

Valte explained that the government cannot be reckless in counting the death toll from the onslaught of Yolanda, citing the need to validate every death before being consolidated with the official count.

She noted that a task group, formed as part of the government’s Yolanda response effort, is currently handling the management of the dead and the missing. She said the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRMMC) and the Department of Health (DoH) must properly identify the body and conduct DNA testing.

“Now, the process for the other submission is currently ongoing. The NDRMMC only adds it once validated through our process that determines the identity and cause of death. So that will take some time,” Valte said.

“We understand also that there is interest in this but the government cannot be reckless and count the bodies like an eyeball. That’s not the process,” she added.

She said the missing persons numbering over a thousand also could not be added to the casualty count yet.

She said under the law, a person missing could only be declared legally dead after seven years for purposes of inheritance. “There is a shorter period if someone was went missing in the event of a calamity,” she added.

More than 6,000 persons were killed when the strongest typhoon hit parts of Visayas in November 8, 2013. The government has yet to release the latest estimate of the death toll.