Local government units (LGUs) were directed by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) to implement forced and mandatory evacuations in areas identified as “high-risk” due to the anticipated adverse effects of Typhoon “Leon”.
NDRRMC Chairman and Department of National Defense (DND) Sec. Gilberto Teodoro Jr. gave the order on Monday night, Oct. 28, which was fully complied with by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) through the issuance of a memorandum order.
The DILG memorandum order, signed by DILG Officer-in-Charge Undersecretary Lord A. Villanueva, directed LGUs to comply with Teodoro’s directive and underscored the urgency of the situation.
“This measure is very crucial to save lives. Being proactive will save lives; it’s better to take action now than to regret later and lose lives,” Teodoro said.
Leon intensified into a typhoon category while it was passing over the waters east of Cagayan, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).
The state weather bureau said that there is a moderate to high risk of life-threatening storm surge in the next 48 hours over the low-lying or exposed coastal localities of Batanes and Babuyan Islands
A Gale Warning was also hoisted over the seaboard of Northern Luzon and the eastern seaboards of Central and Southern Luzon.
Local chief executives (LCEs) were urged to execute forced evacuations as necessary, in accordance with Republic Act 10121 or the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act and the Local Government Code to ensure that residents in high-risk areas promptly relocate to designated evacuation centers or safe areas.
The order came as the national government intensifies its efforts to assist those affected by Severe Tropical Storm “Kristine”.
As of Tuesday, Oct. 29, the NDRRMC said that the death toll due to Kristine rose to 125. There were 28 individuals who were still missing and 115 others who were injured.
Around 7.1 million people or 1.7 million families were affected in all 17 regions across the country. Of this, around 935,000 were displaced and seeking refuge in 5,872 evacuation centers.
Damage to agriculture reached P2.8 billion while infrastructure loss was pegged at P1.5 billion.
Family food packs, hygiene kits, and other relief assistance have been sent to over 46,711 families in Ilocos Region (Region 1), along with support for 34,600 families in Cagayan Valley (Region II), and 86,600 families in Calabarzon (Region 4A).
In Bicol Region (Region 5), approximately P5 million worth of assistance has been dispatched to typhoon victims, while over 62 families in Western Visayas (Region 6) have also received aid. However, in Eastern Visayas (Region 8), only 30 percent of the 107,804 families in need have received assistance.
“We have enough prepositioned items including water filtration machines,” Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Administrator, Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno said.
AFP aerial survey
Meanwhile, General Romeo Brawner Jr., chief of staff, of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), conducted an aerial survey over some severely impacted areas of storm Kristine in Naga City, Milaor, and Bula – all in Camarines Sur.
Brawner personally assessed the extent of damage wrought by the storm and led the distribution of relief goods to residents of Barangay Duran in Balatan, Camarines Sur.
The AFP chief also lauded the 9th Infantry Division (9ID) for balancing their humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR) operations and internal security operations (ISOs) during a visit to Camp Elias Angeles in Pili, Camarines Sur.
“I am very proud of all the accomplishments of the 9th Infantry Division," he stated. "Despite our tall order to end insurgency in the country, we are also called to respond to calamities. And in all these challenges, the AFP, including the 9th ID, always responded and delivered,” he said.
Brawner awarded the Wounded Personnel Medal to Corporal Jaypee Garido, who was injured by shrapnel from an anti-personnel mine that exploded during an encounter between elements of the 49th Infantry Battalion and New People’s Army (NPA) in Pio Duran, Albay last Oct. 27.
Garido and his comrades were on a relief mission in the area when they were engaged by around 10 armed men in a firefight.
Further, vital relief operations of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) also continued using the Presidential helicopters.
Two Bell 412 Presidential helicopters and a Black Hawk chopper were flown by the PAF to deliver over 300 sacks and boxes of assorted relief goods to Bula, Camarines Sur and Libon, Albay – both of which remain inaccessible by land due to the storm’s damage.