Deaths from Pepeng
exceed Ondoy’s
THE death toll from typhoon "Pepeng" which battered Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) and Ilocos region, has surpassed that of storm Ondoy that devastated Metro Manila and Southern Tagalog, figures from the Office of Civil Defense and National Disaster Coordinating Council showed.
OCD-CAR director Olive Luces said in the CAR alone, they have accounted 278 deaths due to Pepeng.
Of the figure, she said, 19 died during the first wave of landslides last Oct. 3. The rest died following the second wave of landslides last Oct. 9, killing 259 people – 170 in Benguet, 58 in Baguio City and 29 in Mt. Province.
The National Disaster Coordinating Council has listed 47 deaths in Ilocos region, four each in Central Luzon and Bicol region and one in Southern Tagalog,
It has listed only 238 deaths in CAR.
NDCC spokesman Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres said they expect the death toll to rise in CAR, as they are still validating other reports of fatalities.
Torres said the official death toll of the NDCC for Pepeng was 311, 185 injured and 48 remain missing.
He said there is a possibility that the death toll of Pepeng would surpass that of Ondoy "because our retrieval operations are ongoing and many are still missing."
The death toll from Ondoy, based on the count of the NDCC, was 337 with 308 injured and 37 still missing.
Of the death toll, most were in Metro Manila.
Torres said the damage caused by Pepeng to infrastructure and agricultural sector is now P7.169 billion. He said damage incurred from Ondoy was P10.49 billion.
He said Pepeng damaged 26,175 houses as against 101,278 from Ondoy.
He said the number of people affected by Pepeng was estimated at more than 2.5 million compared to more than four million affected by Ondoy.
Torres said it was too early to compare the effects of both typhoons because damage assessments on the case of Pepeng are still ongoing.
"Our damage assessment on Pepeng is still partial. We can’t say (which is worse). As we can observe, almost everyday the casualty, the estimate (loss to properties) is increasing," said Torres.
STENCH OF DEATH
In La Trinidad, Benguet, the stench of death surrounds the once hailed salad bowl of the north as the death toll has risen to 189.
Mayor Artemio Galwan said burial for the first batch of casualties has taken place while the rest will be airlifted to the towns of Atok, Buguias and Mankayan.
At the La Trinidad gym there were four coffins, varnished with computer printed nametags, thick clear plastic in place of glass, thumb tacked to the wood, to give a semblance of a decent casket.
At the other side of the gym, municipal workers were busy preparing another batch of coffins, more chairs were being brought in and soon the place will be filled by mourners.
Behind the Benguet General Hospital, a group huddled by a body bag, probably of a relative while waiting for a casket. There were 11 bodies and only half had coffins.
ROADS REOPENED
Fuel and food supply in Baguio city started to normalize as Marcos Highway and Naguilian Road were reopened yesterday to vehicles carrying prime commodities.
Peter Fianza, action officer of the City Disaster Coordinating Council (CDCC), said while the highways were allowed only to accommodate light vehicles, large tankers and trucks carrying gasoline and goods were allowed to pass under heavy monitoring and assistance particularly along Marcos Highway.
Naguilian Road is now accommodating light vehicles while Kennon started serving commuters two days before.
Fianza said retrieval operations continue for the four persons who remained buried in a landslide in Lamtang, Irisan barangay.
Rescuers also resumed the search for the boy believed to have jumped off a river tributary along Magsaysay Avenue at the height of the typhoon Pepeng.
The landslides accounted for 56 deaths in the city.
HIGHER PRIORITY
President Arroyo, in Cabinet meeting in Dagupan city ordered the AFP and PNP to prioritize the rescue of flood victims and the retrieval of bodies from landslides especially in Benguet.
"Rescue has higher priority than relief," she said.
She said blockades to Burgos town in La Union, which has been isolated, should be cleared. – Victor Reyes, Ma. Elena Gonzales, Regina Bengco
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