Casiguran lauded for disaster preparedness

CASIGURAN, Aurora, Philippines – They stood up and waited excitedly as President Aquino and other officials arrived at the municipal hall here to provide assistance and listen to their concerns.

They were back on their feet, literally and figuratively, after being in the eye of Typhoon Lando (Koppu) just last Sunday. And officials said this town could be the model for disaster preparedness despite meager resources.

“I just want to convey to everyone our gratefulness for the efficient preparations. Maybe starting from you (Aquino) on top who gave the orders, along with our governor, mayor... they kept on reminding us captains to force the people to be evacuated so there had not been much problem in our barangays, except for destroyed houses and crops. Thank you very much on behalf of our barangays. Thank you to the staff of Casiguran, you are all hardworking,” an enthusiastic Conchita Descarga, barangay captain of Calabgan, said to the applause and cheers of the audience. 

The President, his Cabinet members and other visiting officials laughed, obviously pleased with Descarga’s energetic expression of thankfulness. 

“Everyone now has the permission to keep on prodding (the barangay captains) the next time,” Aquino said. 

Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman told the audience that such display of gratefulness and strong cooperation among people would give them the enthusiasm to keep on working for their welfare.

Although 93.95 percent of the families here were affected by the typhoon, only two casualties were reported – a woman who died when a television set fell on her and a young student whose head got pierced by a piece of wood. 

Under sunny weather, several towns started to regain a semblance of normalcy despite damaged houses and other infrastructure, fallen electric posts, trees and lack of electricity.  

Farmers dried their palay harvest on concrete roads, women washed clothes by the river and tricycles carried passengers. 

Aquino led the ceremonial distribution of relief goods to affected families. He arrived yesterday morning with Interior Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento, Education Secretary Armin Luistro, Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson, Health Secretary Janette Garin, Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala, Presidential Management Staff chief Julia Abad, acting Energy Secretary  Zenaida Monsada and Soliman.

After the ceremony, Aquino walked to the nearby St. Anthony de Padua Church and inspected the damage caused by the typhoon before inspecting a public market, the Agricula multi-purpose covered court and Tinib Calangwasan Integrated School, which were partially destroyed by Lando.

The President and his officials also went to check on the condition of Casiguran District Hospital, where a child gave him a high five. He said he would conduct an aerial inspection of Pangasinan and Pampanga after the visit here because the two provinces were also experiencing massive flooding.

Mayor Ricardo Bitong said the typhoon affected 6,579 families, comprised of 31,530 individuals, and injured at least 280 people. A total of 883 infrastructure were destroyed and 4,198 were damaged.

“I thought this would collapse,” Bryan Peña, a photographer of the local government, said of the municipal hall. He said the evacuated residents were mostly brought to barangay halls and other evacuation centers.

Residents said houses in coastal areas were submerged while waist-deep floods were experienced in other places. 

“Despite the two casualties, we can consider your place lucky because this typhoon was stronger than Labuyo in 2013,” Sarmiento said.

He said the local officials, along with the military and the police, followed the checklist his department gave, especially on the forced or preemptive relocation aspect. Cooperation, he added, had been a big help in saving lives.

National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council administrator and Undersecretary Alexander Pama congratulated Casiguran town for its preparedness and for protecting its people.

“So they are now our model in disaster risk reduction management in the whole country,” Pama said.

PAGASA modernization

Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto yesterday urged President Aquino to sign the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) modernization bill in a bid to strengthen the capability of the weather agency.

If signed into law, Recto said it would allow the agency to upgrade its equipment units by as much as P3 billion. Otherwise, the PAGASA budget for equipment will plunge to only P343.66 million in 2016 or an 86.2 percent drop from this year’s P2.48 billion capital outlay.

“(The bill is) a needed shot in the arm in the 150-year-old weather bureau,” Recto said, adding that the measure has been transmitted to Malacañang “for the President’s kind consideration.” 

The bill passed on third reading at the House of Representatives on May 26, 2014, while the Senate version was approved on Aug. 17, 2015.

Recto said there is no need for the two chambers to meet in conference to reconcile disagreeing provisions because the Senate merely adopted the House version.

Extreme weather disturbances, he stressed, underscores the need for a modernized PAGASA as the modernization aspect remains the missing link in the country’s climate adaptation efforts.

“There can be no climate change adaptation without a weather bureau modernization,” Recto said.

The bill sent to Malacañang seeks to set aside funds that can reach P3 billion to enable the weather bureau to deliver “reliable, timely, localized” forecast. It supports seven modernization components: equipment and operational techniques, data center, information services, human resources, regional and field weather presence, research and global linkages.

Swift recovery for Lando-affected areas

Meanwhile, Sens. Francis Escudero, Grace Poe and Ferdinand Marcos Jr. joined calls to speed up government efforts to help the areas affected by Typhoon Lando.

Poe called on the government to pick up the right lessons from the rehabilitation efforts in Super Typhoon Yolanda and go for a swifter, more deliberate yet prudent recovery plan for the victims of Lando in Northern and Central Luzon. – With Christina Mendez, Ding Cervantes