Entire Luzon under state of calamity

MANILA, Philippines — President Duterte has placed the entire Luzon under a state of calamity amid widespread damage brought by a series of typhoons in the past weeks.

“Last night I think, I signed the proclamation,” Duterte said in a taped address to the nation the other night, following his weekly meeting with the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) core members.?

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) recommended on Monday that the entire Luzon be placed under a state of calamity, which allows local government units (LGUs) to access quick response funds during emergency situations.

In response, Duterte signed Proclamation 1015.

Authorities reported at least 73 people died due to Typhoon Ulysses (Vamco), the latest typhoon to hit the country, while damage to infrastructure and agriculture in Cagayan Valley were reported to have been worth several billion pesos.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque earlier pointed out that while waiting for the President’s decision, government is also making sure that areas heavily affected by the recent calamities be placed under a state of calamity.

An automatic price freeze is in effect in Luzon under a state of calamity, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said.

Trade Undersecretary Ruth Castelo, in a text message yesterday, said there is an “automatic price freeze upon the declaration of the state of calamity under Sec. 6 of the Price Act.”

Under the Price Act, the price freeze for basic necessities in areas under state of calamity would be in place for 60 days unless lifted earlier.

The price freeze covers rice, corn, bread, fresh, dried and canned fish and other marine products; fresh pork, beef, poultry meat, fresh eggs, fresh and processed milk; fresh vegetables, root crops, coffee, sugar, cooking oil, salt, laundry soap, detergent, firewood, charcoal, candles and drugs classified as essential by the Department of Health.

With a price freeze in effect, retailers including supermarkets, grocery stores and wet markets in areas under a state of calamity would have to comply.

The NDRRMC recommended placing the entire Luzon under a state of calamity due to the widespread damage from typhoons Quinta, Rolly and Ulysses.

NDRRMC officials said in a statement that the full council had agreed to make the recommendation to President Duterte to address the impacts of the latest typhoons that barreled through Metro Manila and most parts of Luzon over the past weeks.

The NDRRMC, headed by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, will also convene a technical working group of the joint prevention, mitigation and preparedness clusters of the agency to assess current dam management.

Lorenzana himself led the meeting Monday with the various NDRRMC agencies and local chief executives.

He likewise asked the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) to revisit its historical data and strengthen warning signals being sent out to the public so as to prevent cases of people getting stranded on their rooftops because of unexpected high flood levels.

PAGASA weather forecaster Raymond Ordinario said one more storm might enter the Philippine area of responsibility before November ends.

The country was recently hit by consecutive storms. PAGASA noted that last month started with Tropical Depression Ofel, followed by Tropical Storm Pepito, Typhoon Quinta, Super Typhoon Rolly on All Saints’ weekend, severe Tropical Storms Siony and Tonyo before Typhoon Ulysses.

The weather bureau yesterday said the northeast monsoon is affecting extreme Northern Luzon.

Batanes and Babuyan Islands will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated light rains due to the northeast monsoon. On the other hand, Metro Manila and the rest of the country will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms due to localized thunderstorms.

PAGASA warned of possible floods or landslides during the meeting last Monday, including the provision of assistance to affected farmers and fisherfolk, road clearing efforts, shelter requirements and other recovery interventions.

Typhoon Quinta left at least 22 dead after exiting the country on Oct. 27.

Quinta was followed by Rolly, dubbed as the strongest typhoon in the world in 2020, which killed 25 after making four landfalls in Southern Luzon early this month.

Meanwhile, Ulysses surpassed the death tolls of the earlier typhoons, with at least 73 confirmed fatalities as of yesterday.

The typhoon caused massive flooding and rescue operations are still ongoing in affected areas, while damage to both property and infrastructure reached billions of pesos.

Sen. Bong Go supports the declaration of the Luzon-wide state of calamity that would provide better disaster mitigation measures.

After leading the distribution of immediate assistance to flood-hit families in Calumpit and Marilao, Bulacan on Tuesday, Go said he supports the recommendation of the NDRRMC to President Duterte to place the entire Luzon under a state of calamity.

“Yes, I’m in favor of that. Rehabilitation efforts of LGUs will be faster under state of calamity and the President approved (the increase in calamity funds) of provinces hit by typhoon. Magbibigay po ng LGUs will be given 1 percent of their IRA to be used for relief and rehabilitation,” he explained.

Cognizant that calamity funds of LGUs are now depleted because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Go earlier appealed to the executive department to replenish the calamity funds of affected LGUs with an amount equivalent to one percent of their respective Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA).

The budget department is expediting the release of augmentation funds following Go’s appeal and subsequent directive from the President.

Go also sought better coordination in various government levels in order to reduce damage following the massive flooding in Cagayan Valley.

He said the national government should remain in charge of managing dams, particularly during typhoons.

He, however, appealed for better coordination with concerned LGUs to be more proactive, such as in ordering preemptive evacuation.

Classes

Cagayan Gov. Manuel Mamba has extended the suspension of classes in the province until the end of November to give parents more time to recover from the ravages of six successive typhoons.

“Parents today are also the teachers, they take over doing the job of educating their children right after receiving their learning modules,” Mamba said.

“It is difficult for the parents to assist their children in their distance learning after this calamity, unlike during normal times when they leave them to school and let the teachers do the job while they clean their houses,” Mamba added.

He said elders are about to start their lives under the “new normal” with uncertainty since most have lost their jobs during the pandemic while others are coping with losses in livelihood after crops and livestock were destroyed by calamities.

As of yesterday at least 1,300 families or 4,837 individuals are still in 89 evacuation centers in Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino while 7,015 families or 19,296 individuals are still seeking refuge with relatives as floods have not yet receded in their areas, according to the Office of Civil Defense.

Tuguegarao City has temporarily relaxed strict health protocols for outsiders who wish to extend humanitarian services as well as for media practitioners intending to cover the typhoon aftermath since Tuesday.

In its Ordinance No. 76-08, the City Council waived the requirements for health clearance and mandatory rapid testing for those included in missions and media members.

The city council said it needs as well to control the entry of visitors who will be coming mostly from COVID-19 hotspots, specially with media practitioners mostly based in Metro Manila.

The ordinance only requires visitors to register online on the city government’s website prior to their scheduled travel to Tuguegarao.

Reservists of the military’s Northern Luzon Command (Nolcom) are now being mobilized to help in continuing disaster response and relief distribution activities for victims of Typhoon Ulysses in Cagayan Valley.

Reserve officers and personnel will be complementing the deployed strategic assets of the AFP in Cagayan Valley as the military gears up post-disaster response operations.

Nolcom chief Maj. Gen. Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos Jr. said the move to tap and deploy reservists was made after his initial coordination with the AFP Reserve Command (RESCOM) was presented and approved by AFP chief Gen. Gilbert Gapay.

“The Reserve Force has played a very significant and invaluable role during some of the most challenging of times in our country’s history, from the aftermath of Yolanda in the Visayas to the post-explosion operations of Taal Volcano and, recently, the period of uncertainty during the outbreak of COVID-19,” he noted.

Environmentalists said declaring a national climate emergency is more urgent and necessary to determine what the government should prioritize to protect Filipinos from the ill effects of the climate crisis.

Greenpeace Philippines said the government must not only focus on responding to and preparing for calamities but, just as important, must strengthen policies to mitigate the climate crisis and its impacts.

“Disaster preparedness and response are vital, but we need to focus beyond disasters and address broader, systemic issues that are part of the problem in order to better mitigate climate impacts,” Greenpeace Climate Justice campaigner Virginia Benosa-Llorin said.— Louella Desiderio, Michael Punongbayan, Rhodina Villanueva, Evelyn Macairan, Neil Jayson Servallos, Raymund Catindig, Christina Mendez