State of calamity in Isabela, La Union

TUGUEGARAO, Philippines – The provinces of Isabela and La Union were placed under a state of calamity yesterday in the aftermath of Typhoon Lando that damaged billions of pesos worth of crops and infrastructure.

Isabela Gov. Faustino Dy III said the destruction to agriculture in the province had soared close to P800 million.

Department of Agriculture regional director Lucrecio Alviar said Isabela was the most devastated province in Region 2 with over 120,600 hectares of rice land destroyed, followed by Cagayan with 83,000 hectares.

La Union, on the other hand, listed P280 million worth of damage to crops, fisheries and livestock.

The Provincial Agricultural Office said 7,760 hectares of farmland were submerged.

The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council pegged damage to infrastructure at P71 million.

Provincial agricultural officer Imelda Sannadan said Lando destroyed P214 million worth of agriculture in the province.

Fishponds and fish cages in the towns of Aringay and Sto. Tomas were destroyed, losing more than P23 million worth of milkfish and tilapia.

Damage to vegetable and corn crops was estimated at P5.5 million and P150, 373 respectively, while P946,400 worth of tree crops were destroyed.

The province of Pangasinan, which was earlier placed under a state of calamity, posted P1.3 billion worth of damage to agriculture and infrastructure.

The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council yesterday reported that Pangasinan suffered damage worth P821,073,929.49 to agriculture, P353,867, 000 to infrastructure and P166,260,000 to houses.

Central Luzon reported total damage worth more than P7 billion in crops and infrastructure.

The Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said the amount of damage to agriculture in the region had reached P6.8 million and more than P500 million in infrastructure.

The National Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported yesterday that the damage Typhoon Lando wrought to agriculture and infrastructure in Luzon was estimated at P9 billion. –Jaime Laude, Eva Visperas, Ric Sapnu, Ramon Efren Lazaro, Manny Galvez, Vic Alhambra