Holiday season floods death toll hits 52

MANILA, Philippines — The death toll due to floods during the holiday season has climbed to 52 while 18 remain missing.

Latest reports from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) showed that 26 of the fatalities are from Northern Luzon.

The NDRRMC report covered the period from Dec. 18 until the Christmas Day weekend, when the shear line, or the meeting of the cold and warm air from the northern and southern hemispheres, brought heavy rain.

Up to 163,320 families or 640,748 people in the Visayas and Mindanao were affected.

Damage to agriculture, including irrigation facilities, was placed at P245 million.

The NDRRMC said 7,114 families or 26,015 people are still taking shelter at 170 evacuation centers.

Reports from the Department of Education (DepEd) in Caraga and Northern Mindanao showed that eight schools were still being used as evacuation centers as of Tuesday.

DepEd allows schools to be used as evacuation centers for a maximum of 15 days to minimize disruption of classes.

Forty-one public schools in Zamboanga peninsula, Caraga and Northern Mindanao were damaged. An estimated P389.5 million is needed for repairs, DepEd said.

Meanwhile, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said it is ready to assist local government units (LGUs) affected by rains caused by the northeast monsoon or amihan in Luzon and Eastern Visayas.

The DSWD said it has prepositioned 24,400 family food packs and 5,400 non-food items in Cagayan Valley.

It said it is also monitoring the situation in Eastern Visayas to ensure that any concern will be immediately addressed.

As of Jan. 2, the DSWD said it has P100 million in standby funds and 576,455 family food packs for augmentation to affected LGUs. – Janvic Mateo, Rainier Allan Ronda