Two people died in Nueva Ecija at the height of the onslaught of typhoon "Pepito", Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Juanito ‘Jonvic’ Remulla said on Monday, Nov. 18.
But Remulla cleared the local officials, saying there were efforts to have the two fatalities evacuated from their residents located near a riverbank.
In a Radyo Pilipinas interview, Remulla said the two fatalities were reported to have turned down the evacuation offer and opted to remain in their house.
“Ng umakyat na tubig ng ilog natangay sila. Hindi na po ito kasalanan ng local officials talagang pinipilit silang umalis pero matigas talaga ulo at natangay sila na rumaragasa tubig ng ilog (When the water in the river rose, they were swept away. This is not the fault of the local officials who were forcing them to leave the place but they were stubborn and they were eventually washed away by the rushing water in the river),’’ Remulla explained.
To minimize disaster-related casualties, Remulla called on the local officials nationwide to be up on their toes and to strictly monitor the weather conditions in the coming days.
He also appealed to those who may be affected by the typhoons to cooperate with the authorities and government emergency and rescue teams if there is any order for them to evacuate for their own safety.
Remulla also asked the public to take the government’s emergency response appeals, particularly the call for evacuation, with extreme seriousness and consider the current weather disturbance occurrences as the new normal.
He also noted that the motorcycle rider who was electrocuted due to the dangling live wire cannot be accounted as a typhoon Pepito-related casualty.