‘Ompong’ infra damage balloons to P2.7B

A week after typhoon “Ompong” (international name: Mangkhut) tore through the country, 11 roads in five provinces remained closed to traffic as the cost of damage to public infrastructure reached P2.74 billion.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) noted this on Friday as it recommended to President Rodrigo Duterte the declaration of a state of calamity in four regions battered by Ompong.

The President’s declaration is needed to trigger measures that would keep prices of basic goods low in the affected areas and make available to the country a standby World Bank loan facility for rehabilitation efforts.

National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Undersecretary Adoracion Navarro told a press conference on Friday that the NDRRMC backed the government economic team’s request to the President to declare a state of calamity in northern Luzon, Cagayan Valley, central Luzon and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).

Latest tally: 95 dead

In its latest tally of Ompong-related casualties nationwide, the Philippine National Police recorded 95 deaths, 69 injured and 54 missing as of Friday.

Most of the casualties were from CAR, the hardest-hit region where 79 people died, 42 were injured and 50 were missing.

During the NDRRMC’s special meeting on Thursday, the council “established that conditions necessary for the declaration of a state of calamity in Regions 1, 2, 3 and CAR are present,” Navarro said.

According to Navarro, two of five conditions must be met before a state of calamity can be declared. In the case of Ompong’s aftermath, four conditions were present, namely, impact on livelihood, infrastructure, crops, as well as disruption of power and water supply.

The Department of Public Works and Highways said the 11 road sections would remain impassable to the public as clearing works were still ongoing.

11 roads closed

In Benguet, roads still closed to traffic are Kennon Road, Baguio-Bontoc Road (Busa and Tiging sections), Baguio-Bua-Itogon Road (Sitio Goldfield and Sitio Kiangan sections), Acop-Kapangan-Kibungan-Bakun Road and sections of Banaue-Hungduan-Benguet Boundary Road.

The Abra-Ilocos Norte Road in Abra and sections of the Apayao-Ilocos Norte Road in Apayao were also still closed to traffic.

The Mount Province Boundary-Calanan-Pinukpuk-Abbut Road (Mabongis Bridge) and the Balbalan-Pinukpuk Road (Maling section) in Kalinga were still impassable while the Baliwag-Candaba-Sta. Ana Road (Bomba Bridge) and the Candaba-San Miguel Road have not been repaired or cleared of debris.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources warned on Friday that landslides could still happen in Itogon, Benguet, even with the halt in mining activities in the area.

Environment Undersecretary Benny Antiporda said the site where the landslide occurred in Itogon was within a geohazard zone. He said the landslide could not have been caused by mining.

Rescuers have recovered 46 bodies from the buried bunkhouses that had sheltered small-scale miners and their families. The bunkhouses were used by the mining company Benguet Corp. until 1991, when it stopped operations in the area. —WITH A REPORT FROM JAYMEE T. GAMIL