MANILA, Philippines — Super Typhoon Rolly’s destructive winds over the weekend left nearly P6 billion in public infrastructure damage, a number only poised to go up as government assesses the economic impact of the disaster.
As of November 3, infrastructures with combined amount of P5.76 billion were found smashed, ruined and in need of repair, the public works department said in a statement on Tuesday.
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Broken down, flood control structures accounted for the bulk of destruction with P2.04 billion worth of damage. National roads followed, suffering P1.52 billion in losses. Other public outlays worth P1.38 billion were also affected.
In addition, P458.2 million worth of flood control structures were likewise ruined, while damage to public buildings were pegged at P367.25 billion.
“As expected, our assessment teams identified majority of the destruction in Bicol Region,” Public Works Secretary Mark Villar said in a statement. Of the total amount of damage, those recorded in Bicol Region hit P4.62 billion.
The destruction on public infrastructures meant roads have become impassable in provinces like Catanduanes, which suffered the brunt of “Rolly” over the weekend now faces difficulty getting reached by aid from Metro Manila and neighboring areas due three blocked roads. Elsewhere in the Bicol Region, five avenues were likewise closed.
Outside Bicol, two roads in the Cordillera Administrative Region and Central Luzon were also closed to motorists. Overall, 19 road sections had been cleared and opened by the public works agency’s quick response teams to date.
“DPWH quick response teams are fast-tracking clearing operations along the affected road sections in the island as we have no alternative routes as of the moment,” Villar said.
“These roads must to be opened soonest for the relief efforts which Catanduanes badly needs right now,” he added.
Packing maximum sustained wind speeds of 225 kilometers per hour, the super typhoon made a full impact in Bicol on Sunday, sending thousands of families into evacuation centers, toppling trees and cutting off power lines in the area. Seventeen people had so far been confirmed dead because of the calamity.
That landfall, meanwhile, saved Metro Manila from further destruction as the landmass weakened the typhoon’s strength dramatically on course to the capital before heading out to West Philippine Sea on Monday.
Apart from infrastructure, “Rolly” left around P1.8 billion in damage to crops as of Monday.