More areas in Metro Manila, Luzon declare state of calamity

MANILA, Philippines - Three more cities and a municipality in Metro Manila declared a state of calamity as torrential rains continued, causing more flooding on Wednesday afternoon.

Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim said that he is placing the capital city under a state of calamity. He said 60 percent of streets in the city were flooded as of 5 p.m.

Pasay City Mayor Tony Calixto also said that the council placed the city under a state of calamity at around 4 p.m. This was followed by the same declarations by the local government units of Pasig City and Pateros.

Three more cities in the capital region, including Malabon, Valenzuela and Muntinlupa, have declared a state of calamity.

Based on the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council's (NDRRMC) 7 a.m. report today, a total of 3,000 people were affected by flooding in Valenzuela and 2,`183 people were affected in Malabon.

A total of 8,280 residents of Muntinlupa City were also affected by massive flooding.

Other areas badly-hit by torrential rains in Metro Manila were Marikina City, Caloocan City, Manila City and Quezon City.

Among all areas affected by flooding in the capital region, Caloocan City has the highest number of affected residents which has been pegged at 28,665.

Reports said that rescue operations were ongoing in at least 17 flooded areas in Metro Manila.

Local authorities have also declared a state of calamity in the provinces of Bataan, Laguna, Pampanga and Zambales; and Cainta, Rodriguez and San Mateo in Rizal province.

Several towns in Bulacan have also been placed under state of calamity.

The NDRRMC reported that a total of 1,230,813 persons were affected by non-stop rains and flooding in Ilocos region, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa and Metro Manila.

It said that a total of 242,211 persons are staying in evacuation centers and 607,941 persons are either staying in their relatives' or friends' homes.

Fatalities

The disaster response agency has so far confirmed 11 fatalities from the flooding, nine of which are members of a family whose home was buried by a landslide in Quezon City on Tuesday morning. The two other fatalities were recorded in Pampanga and Zambales.

The NDRRMC has yet to include in its fatality count the security guard who died of electrocution in Manila and three victims of drowning in Manila, Malabon and Caloocan cities.

There was also a report of another person who died of a heart attack and one child missing after being swept by floodwaters in Bataan province.

Meanwhile, the NDRRMC has alerted several local government units in Luzon as dams, including Ipo, Ambuklao, Binga, San Roque and Magat, continued to release water.

These areas were: San Manuel, San Nicolas, Tayug, Sta. Maria, Asingan, Villasis, Alcala, Bautista, Rosales and Bayambang in Pangasinan province; Ramon, San Mateo, Aurora, Cabanatuan, Luna, Reina Mercedes, Burgos, Naguilian and Gamu in Isabela; and low-lying areas along Angat river from Norzagaray to Hagonoy.

People living near the La Mesa Dam were also alerted as the dam continues to overflow as of 6 a.m. today.

Price freeze

Trade and Industry Secretary Gregory Domingo had said Tuesday that the government will impose price control on basic commodities in areas under state of calamity.

“As soon as state of calamity is declared, price control takes effect. So, I advise traders and retailers not to take undue advantage of the situation. Supermarkets and grocery stores have remained open,” Domingo said.

Domingo said that prices and supply remained stable except for the considerable increases in fresh water fish such as "bangus" and "tilapia."

He said he expects some disruptions in supply because of the difficulty in the delivery of goods as some areas are still under water. Domingo also plans to convene the National Price Coordinating Council (NPCC).

Based on the latest (July 30-August 3) DTI Price Monitoring, the price of bangus (milk fish) has gone up from P100 per kilo to P120 per kilo in the same period last year while the price of tilapia has increased up to P100 from P80 and of alumahan from P120 per kilo to P140.

Trade and Industry Undersecretary for consumer welfare Zenaida Maglaya said the DTI was coordinating with the Department of Agriculture on the prices of agricultural products.

Prices of refined sugar also went up to P50 a kilo from P46 a year ago while the washed sugar also raised prices from P42 to P44. The brown sugar has remained unchanged at P40.

Vegetable prices are also going up with carrots now selling at P60 a kilo from P20 a week ago. White potato also increased prices to P50 a kilo from only P35 a year ago while eggplant has adjusted prices to P40 from P30. Okra also rose P5 per kilo to P35 from P30 while kangkong leaves to P40 from P30.