Nearly 4,000 passengers stranded in Bicol; Matnog port queue stretches to 1 km

Update

LEGAZPI CITY — Stranded passengers in the Bicol region reached 3,839 on Thursday due to Tropical Depression “Usman,” which is expected to make landfall over Eastern Samar on Friday afternoon.

Raden Dimaano, chief of the Sorsogon Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, said that the queue of trucks and buses outside Matnog port has reached up to 1 kilometer as of 7 p.m.

Most of the stranded passengers are in Matnog, with 3,398 passengers staying at the port. The other passengers are in Pasacao in Camarines Sur (156); Pilar (220) and Bulan (45) in Sorsogon; Virac (14) and San Andres (6); and Pio Duran (390) in Albay.

Meanwhile, 163 rolling cargoes and 173 vehicles were prevented from sailing on Thursday./ee