MANILA, 2 July 2004 — The government yesterday placed several provinces in the northern Philippines under a state of calamity a day after Typhoon Mindulle’s mad sweep, causing heavy destruction and leaving at least 19 people dead.
Agriculture Secretary Luis Lorenzo said preliminary reports showed that the typhoon had caused about 268 million pesos ($4.8 million) in damage to agriculture, mostly in rice— and corn-growing areas.
At least 13 people were still reported missing as swollen rivers flooded numerous villages in the northern parts of Luzon Island, said the Office of Civil Defense.
Mindulle, locally named Igme, was headed toward Taiwan last night. It was the ninth tropical cyclone to hit the Philippines this year.
“Most of those killed were due to drowning from flash floods,” said Neri Amparo, head of the OCD’s operations division.
Packing winds of up to 190 kph (118 mph) and gusts of 230 kph (140 mph), the typhoon also destroyed buildings in coastal towns in the northern province of Cagayan.
“There are partially blown and fully blown houses, specially in our coastal areas, but the biggest damage is on our crops — corn, palay (unmilled rice),” Cagayan Governor Edgar Lara told the DZMM radio station.
Close to 200,000 people were forced to flee from their homes at the height of the typhoon, OCD officials said.
Wide areas of northern Luzon were plunged into darkness as strong winds felled electric poles and brought down transmission lines, they said.
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo ordered the release of emergency funds to provinces hardest hit by the typhoon. Total relief assistance, mostly coming from private donations, has so far reached 1.3 million pesos, according to the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
Casualties
Four of the fatalities were identified as Florentino Rebibis and Sioning Corpuz, both of Buguey; Jennifer Eslabra of Alcala; and Juan Taburo of Gattaran town.
The other victims, from Buguey, Gattaran, Pamplona and Baggao towns, had yet to be identified, said Edna Junio, provincial social welfare director.
In Ilocos Sur, Mayor Jesus Bueno Jr. of Santa town said five people were believed killed after the Abra River overflowed at the height of the typhoon.
Since yesterday, Bueno said rescuers had been searching for the bodies of Romeo Baguyo, his wife Clarita and their children Ronald, 13; Romel, 12; and Romeo Jr., 6, all of Barangay Calungbuyan, Santa.
In Ilocos Norte, two more people were reportedly killed while two others were missing. Louie Laynos drowned in Laoag City, while another body was found in San Nicolas town.
The DSWD’s head office in Quezon City said Josefina Curameng, of Poblacion 2, Pagudpud, died of a heart attack, while her town-mate, Rodrigo Basilio, drowned.
In Pangasinan, two girls drowned on Wednesday in Barangay Basangay Ballige in Laoac town. Reports said Rachel Gayacan and her cousin Jennifer Cacho, both 12, were catching frogs in a creek when a strong current swept them. The DSWD identified the victims as Rachel Gacayan and Gennefer Bacani.
The number of fatalities in Cordillera rose to four after a man was crushed by a landslide on Wednesday night in Tuba, Benguet.
Earlier, three people were buried in a landslide on Wednesday in Tabuk, Kalinga, (not Balbalan as earlier reported). They were Mary Jane Balisi, Edzel Agapito and Michilyn Molang.
Officials also reported that nine people from Flora town in Apayao have been missing. Vicente Tomazar, OCD Cordillera director, said rescue workers had reported seeing bodies floating in the swollen Apayao River.
Three people were reported missing, while six others were injured in Benguet.
Mamerto Quijon, 30, was rescued from a landslide near the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center in Baguio City, while workers saved Linda Oide and Marzan Amos at Km 3 in Barangay Pico in La Trinidad, Benguet.
Two other landslide victims, Flora Uyami and Mary Napadawan, were rescued in Hungduan, Ifugao, on Wednesday, while Richard Magalong, 16, survived a car crash in Balbalan, Kalinga.
To avoid further damage and loss of property, the Department of Public Works and Highways issued a list of “not passable” roads in the Ilocos region.
State of Calamity
Ilocos Norte was declared under a state of calamity during a special session by the provincial board, which allocated 20 million pesos to help the victims. A total of 15,089 families in 199 villages have been displaced.
Laoag’s city government also declared a state of calamity and allotted 5 million pesos.
In Abra, logs, animals and appliances were seen floating along Abra River. Floodwaters had reached the Quirino Bridge crossing the river, government engineers said.
Barangays Pagala, Patoc, Bengbangcay, Labon and San Miguel in Bucay town were also flooded, the OCD-Cordillera said.
The office of the provincial agriculturist said crops worth over P6 million were destroyed. Damage to houses was estimated at 100,000 pesos, while 438 families were taken to evacuation centers.
Benigno Paderes of Sallapadan, Abra, have been missing since Wednesday, while two others were reported injured.
The OCD said Igme destroyed 86 houses in the Cordillera, affecting 6,532 families and causing the evacuation of 273 more families.
The swollen Chico River flooded the towns of Tabuk and Pinukpok, both in Kalinga. Barangays San Antonio, Alim and Imelda of Pudtol town in Apayao were flooded after the Apayao River overflowed.
Officials said crop losses in Benguet were estimated at 13.14 million pesos while those in Apayao reached 85 million pesos.
National Power Corp. alerted the Pangasinan towns that it had opened by 9 meters in diameter at least 12 floodgates of Ambuklao and Binga dams in Benguet. (Additional Input from Inquirer News Service/Reuters)
