Tropical Depression Usman death toll hits 68

MANILA, Philippines — The reported casualties due to rains brought by Tropical Depression Usman have reached 68, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said.

Bicol Office of Civil Defense (OCD) director Claudio Yucot said this number is still expected to rise as sightings of dead bodies continue to be reported to authorities.

As of yesterday, the NDRRMC said 19 persons remained missing and were being accounted for in several search and rescue operations.

Massive and “bulky” operations are being carried out in flooded portions of Nabua and Buhi towns and in Iriga City – all in Camarines Sur – where residents were trapped inside houses or are waiting on roofs for help.

“Our responders are having difficulty in penetrating these villages due to the deep floods and continuing heavy downpour. But we will not stop until these rescue efforts are over,” Yucot told The STAR.

He lamented that people did not heed their advisories prior to Usman’s entry. He said this could have been due to Usman’s weak strength, which was only at 45 to 65 kilometers per hour.

“Plus most of them were, maybe, already in a vacation or holiday mood and they did not want to get out of their houses anymore,” he said.

The NDRRMC, through the Management of the Dead and the Missing cluster led by the Department of the Interior and Local Government, is validating the reported 68 casualties from Regions V and VIII. Data showed that 57 of the deaths were mostly due to drowning and landslides in Region V, with the remaining 11 coming from Region VIII.

It added that 12 individuals from Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) and Region V were reported injured.

OCD Undersecretary Ricardo Jalad said dozens of personnel from the Philippine National Police, Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Bureau of Fire Protection, Philippine Air Force, Philippine Navy and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) are coordinating with the provincial incident management team in search, rescue and retrieval operations in Iriga City and the towns of Tiwi, Nabua and Buhi in Bicol.

“Response assets such as rubber boats, aluminum boats, backhoe and trucks are already deployed to the said areas,” he added.

He said in Region V, one of the most affected regions, a total of 1,058 families or 3,978 individuals were housed in 10 different evacuation centers with the Department of Social Welfare and Development providing food and other needs.

Jalad added that Usman, which has weakened into a low-pressure area, is exiting the country although rains are still expected because of the tail-end of a cold front.

Areas that will be affected by moderate to occasional heavy rains include the Bicol region, Cagayan, Isabela, Aurora, Quezon, Mindoro provinces, Marinduque, Romblon and Northern Palawan including Calamian and Cuyo islands, while Metro Manila, Cordillera Administrative Region and the rest of Cagayan Valley will experience light to moderate rains.

PCG spokesman Captain Armand Balilo said that based on latest information received from the field, 11 bodies were recovered in Tiwi, Albay and another 10 in Nato, Camarines Sur.

The men also rescued at least 20 people in Tiwi, five each in Nato and Nabua, 20 in Iriga – all in Camarines Sur – and at least 2,180 in Vinzon, Camarines Norte.

He added that they are still conducting rescue operations in Baao and Buhi towns in Camarines Sur.

The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) has also participated in the search and rescue operations and has been providing relief to survivors since the weekend.

Sen. Richard Gordon, PRC chairman, said the organization would continue to work to alleviate the suffering of affected residents.

According to the PRC operation center, at least 10,825 individuals remain in 72 evacuation centers in the provinces of Albay, Camarines Norte and Sur, Sorsogon and in Northern and Western Samar.

The damage to agriculture has reached P200 million, according to the Department of Agriculture. Of this, the rice sector was hit hardest with 8,884 hectares of fields destroyed.

It added that the situation affected at least 6,318 farmers in Quezon, Albay, Camarines Norte and Sur, Catanduanes, Sorsogon and Samar.

For those intending to go to Naga City from Manila and vice versa, the DPWH said the Daang Maharlika in Nabua is still not passable to light vehicles and advised motorists to instead take the Polangui Albay-Tandaay Nabua-Bula road.

It also said motorists could take the Iriga-Hanawan Ocampo road en route to Naga City from Iriga. – With Cet Dematera, Evelyn Macairan, Louise Maureen Simeon, Rainier Allan Ronda