Noy monitored storm from Jakarta; 'Bebeng' leaves 13 dead

JAKARTA – At the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders’ summit in Jkarta, Indonesia, President Aquino monitored developments as tropical storm “Bebeng” battered the country last Sunday, leaving 13 people dead.

Aquino headed home yesterday morning after his flight to Manila was delayed due to the storm.

Bebeng lashed the eastern coast of Luzon and Metro Manila with fierce winds and rain that sparked floods and landslides, officials said.

The storm made landfall in Catanduanes with winds of 85 kilometers per hour (kph) and gusts of 100 kph early Sunday, then roared toward nine northern Luzon provinces, retaining its strength. It toppled trees, roughed up Manila Bay and rattled nerves overnight in the congested capital.

Officials warned villagers to stay away from mountainous regions prone to landslides and low-lying communities that could be swamped by flashfloods. Fishermen and ferries were advised to stay ashore along the storm’s path.

Bebeng triggered landslides and floods, disrupted transportation and knocked out power in several towns in the eastern Bicol region Sunday. It struck with about a month left in the summer vacation season, when many students and their families trek to beach and mountain resorts.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported that among the 13 who died were four from Camarines Sur, four from Albay and one each from Metro Manila, Catanduanes, Leyte and Northern Samar.

A tornado also killed one resident who suffered a heart attack in Calumpit, Bulacan.

Among the fatalities were Rexambard Tayamora, 9, who drowned in Barangay Tilis, Bato, Catanduanes; Maribel Reulan, 19; Princes Reulan, 8; Marco Sanchez, 7; Aristeo Sabido, 31, who were buried alive in a landslide that hit Barangay Luluatan, Balatan, Camarines Sur the other day; Arnulfo Pasito, 23, who was electrocuted at the height of heavy rains in Barangay 4, Libon town and Adrian Clark also of Libon; Lourdes Lantero, 58, who drowned in Daraga town, all in Albay; Luis Dingcol, 46, who drowned in Barangay Canlanpay, Carigara, Leyte and Jerry Mijares, 38 who also drowned in Barangay Bonifacio, Lope de Vega, Northern Samar.

Felicisima Mungcal, head of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC) in Bulacan said a tornado hit the villages of Balungao, Frances, San Miguel, Sapang Bayan, Poblacion, Meysulao, Corazon, and Gatbuca in Calumpit on Saturday night.

Mungcal said that one person died of heart attack during the onslaught of the tornado.

The victim was identified as Alberto Tolentino, 59 of Barangay San Miguel.

At least 41 houses were damaged and a person died when a tornado swept through eight villages of Calumpit.

Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Officer-in-charge Director Ronald Flores said that aside from the 13 dead, the storm has displaced 21,320 families or 111,473 persons from 150 flood and landslide -stricken villages in 17 municipalities, five cities and six provinces in Bicol Region, Eastern Visayas and Metro Manila that were ravaged by Bebeng.

The management of Ipo Dam, La Mesa Dam and Binga Dam had released yesterday excess waters due to the continuous rains, raising fears of flooding in Central Luzon and Northern Luzon.

Bebeng, the second storm to batter the Philippines this year, is expected to blow away from the country on Thursday. About 20 typhoons and storms lash the Philippines each year.

Authorities helped evacuate thousands of villagers over the weekend in farming communities at the base of Mayon volcano in Albay, where heavy rain threatened to cause mudslides. Many more fled their flooded homes in the province.

Many domestic and international flights were canceled or diverted and President Aquino was forced to delay his flight to Manila from Jakarta due to the weather.

The President’s chartered RP C6226 jet plane took off at exactly 8:15 a.m. from the Perdanakusuma Military Airbase in Jakarta.  

He was originally scheduled to be home Sunday evening but his pilots and the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) insisted on a 12-hour delay citing extreme weather conditions that could endanger their flight.

Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office Secretary Ramon Carandang said that during the wait Aquino made good use of time by monitoring the situation back home through close coordination with Social Welfare and Development Secretary Corazon Soliman, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, the Office of Civil Defense, NDRRMC and Pagasa.

“He only wanted to make sure that everything the DSWD and NDRRMC should do was being done. He was monitoring the weather and the path of storm, the preparations. He received report at least every hour about the situation,” Carandang said.

“The protection of lives is very important to him, making sure that everyone is safe in the areas that could be possibly hit by the storm,” Carandang said.

He said that during the ASEAN summit, Aquino pushed for various initiatives, including enhanced cooperation on disaster management.

The President described his trip as successful and significant as the Philippines was able to reach out to its neighbors and was sought out by countries to be of help to them.

Upon his arrival in Manila, the President was expected to attend to several appointments including a meeting with the senators on his proposal to postpone the elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in August.

The President cited the importance of participating in the summit, especially in areas of disaster management, curbing of illegal drug trade and trafficking in persons, piracy and maritime security.

Storm weakens

Pagasa said Bebeng weakened yesterday after hitting northern Casiguran in Aurora but storm warning signals remained hoisted over 19 areas in Luzon.

Storm warning signal no. 2 was raised over Aurora, Isabela, Quirino, Nueva Vizcaya, Ifugao, Mountain Province, Kalinga and Cagayan.

Signal no. 1 was up in Northern Quezon, Polillo Island, Nueva Ecija, Benguet, Ilocos Sur, Abra, Ilocos Norte, Apayao, Babuyan, Calayan group of Islands and Batanes.

As of 10 a.m. yesterday, the eye of Bebeng was spotted at 80 kilometers south southeast of Tuguegarao City or 55 km north northwest of Casiguran.

It packed maximum sustained winds of up to 90 kilometers per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 90 kph and moving north northwest at 15 kph.

Pagasa said Bebeng would continue to enhance the southwest monsoon and bring rains over the rest of Southern Luzon and Visayas.

The bureau warned residents in low lying areas and near mountain slopes against possible flashfloods and landslides.

It also alerted those living in coastal areas against big waves or storm surges generated by the storm.

Pagasa said Bebeng is expected to be at 90 km southwest of Basco, Batanes this morning; 240 km northeast of Itbayat tomorrow morning and 580 km northeast of Itbayat by Thursday morning.

The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) is monitoring all its transmission lines and substations in North Luzon.

As of 12 noon yesterday, all major transmission lines in affected areas by storm Bebeng are still under normal operations.

In South Luzon operations, NGCP said it already started deploying its linemen to inspect and assess transmission facilities affected by the storm in Camarines Sur.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development has sent P3.38 million in standby funds and relief goods worth P32.41 million for the areas that the storm ravaged.

NGCP said the affected facilities included Tinambac 69-kV Line that tripped at 1:32 a.m. yesterday was restored at 11:47 a.m. and the affected customers included CASURECO II (Tinambac, Siruma, Sta. Cruz and Mangiring).

Another line affected by the typhoon was Agdangan-Sta. Cruz 69-kV Line that tripped at 10:02 a.m. last Sunday. One pole was damaged.

NGCP said floods have hampered repairs at this line. Affected load will be shifted from Iriga Substation to Daraga Substation upon completion of inspection. Affected customers included CASURECO III (Iriga City, Buhi, Nabua, Bato).

NGCP is the concessionaire now operating and managing the country’s transmission highway that is being operated by the SM group under Henry Sy Jr.

P-Noy on ASEAN trip

President Aquino said that aside from cooperation on disaster management, he was also able to raise concerns on migrant workers and the Philippine stand on territorial disputes during the ASEAN summit.

Aquino also noted that if the Philippines was known to be the one always seeking for assistance, other countries had also sought the country’s help to get investments and address various issues in their countries, including high prices of oil.

“Now we are being recognized as somebody that can provide help,” he said.

Aquino said Indonesia inquired about the targeted subsidy due to high oil prices affecting the region as its government subsidy for all of its citizenry had been eating up much of its budget.

He also cited the Philippines’ offer to mediate or become an observer to end the clashes between Thailand and Cambodia, whose border disputes became the controversial issue during the summit.

Aquino and the other ASEAN leaders unanimously declared that the ongoing boarder dispute between Thailand and Cambodia must be peacefully resolved in the spirit of ASEAN solidarity and in line with their desire to have one community by 2015.

The Philippines was also chosen to chair the 7th Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).

“ASEAN’s goal of economic integration and a more synergistic community by 2015 stands. We recognize BIMP-EAGA’s role in achieving that goal, and gather now to reaffirm our efforts and gains in promoting economic and social development, connectivity and shared prosperity in the sub-region,” Aquino said in his speech before the BIMP-EAGA summit on Sunday.

“There have been steady gains in ASEAN economic integration, as manifested by the operationalization of sub-regional economic cooperation such as BIMP-EAGA. For the past 17 years, BIMP-EAGA has served as a vital mechanism in the process of actualizing our collective vision as brother nations, and we are confident of its continued significance in such crucial initiatives as those in transport connectivity, and trade facilitation,” he said.

BIMP-EAGA has been positioning itself as a food production hub, as well as a premier ecotourism destination taking in account the richness of the country’s biodiversity.

“In achieving these strategic thrusts, convergence and complementation of support across sectors and stakeholders will be very crucial. Our presence here, as leaders of BIMP-EAGA, is a concrete manifestation of our firm support for this sub-regional cooperation,” Aquino said. With Jaime Laude, Helen Flores, Donnabelle Gatdula, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Aie Balagtas See, Dino Balabo, Cet Dematera, Ric Sapnu, Celso Amo, AP