Severe Tropical Storm “Kristine” left a trail of destruction as it exited the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) while claiming the lives of 81 people and dealing P291.5 million in damage to the country’s agriculture and infrastructure sectors.
Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Administrator, Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno said on Saturday, Oct. 26, that there were 34 individuals who were also missing while 66 others were injured.
Calabarzon (Region 4A) had the most number of reported fatalities at 48, including at least 18 who were buried alive in a landslide in Talisay City, Batangas. It was followed by Bicol Region (Region 5) which had 28 deaths.
The other fatalities were recorded in Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) with two; and one each in Ilocos Region (Region 1), Central Luzon (Region 3), and Zamboanga Peninsula (Region 9).
Meanwhile, a total of 4,207,387 individuals or 986,974 families were affected by Kristine in 16 out of the 17 regions nationwide. Only Davao Region (Region 11) had no reported data.
Of those affected, there were around 495,000 individuals or 132,000 families that were displaced and staying in 6,452 evacuation centers or other people’s house.
Kristine also caused damage to 98 infrastructure projects worth P203 million in total including roads, flood control, schools, bridges, health facilities, and other government and utility services facilities.
Thousands of people were rendered homeless as Kristine destroyed 8,432 houses.
The massive flooding and punishing winds also damaged 1,613.77 hectares of crops as well as various livestock, poultry and fisheries that affected 3,049 farmers and fisherfolk, as damage to agriculture was estimated at P87.5 million.
Nepomuceno said search and rescue operations were still ongoing since 338 areas were still flooded in Regions 1, 2, 3, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, 5, 6, 8, 9, 12, Caraga, Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and National Capital Region.
Many households were also without power: 154 areas in Northern and Southern Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao were affected by power interruption.
Water supply also remains an issue as interruption was being experienced in 18 areas in Bicol Region and Calabarzon.
Fifty areas in Regions 1, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, 5, 10, and Cordillera Administrative Region were also experiencing communication interruption as communication lines were damaged.
On the other hand, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said 1,867 passengers were still stranded in 37 ports nationwide although suspension of sea travels in some provinces are slowly being lifted.
Kristine exited PAR around 2 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 25. It maintained its strength while moving west southwestward over the West Philippine Sea.