Paeng displaces thousands of families in Calabarzon

Men walk along a debris-covered street in Noveleta, Cavite province on October 30, 2022, a day after Tropical Storm Nalgae hit. – Emergency workers scrambled to rescue residents trapped by floods in and around the Philippine capital on October 30 as Tropical Storm Nalgae swept out of the country after killing at least 48 people. (Photo by JAM STA ROSA / AFP)

LUCENA CITY — Tropical Storm Paeng (international name: Nalgae) left scores of displaced families in the Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) region.

The disaster preparedness council in Quezon province reported that as of Saturday midnight (Oct. 29), 18,801 families (65,849 individuals) living in disaster-prone areas were evacuated in different parts of the province.

At least 231 families were beneficiaries of the government’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) or those who are still below the poverty threshold of the government.

READ: Paeng cuts through Metro Manila, Rizal, Bulacan

The evacuees from 487 barangays (villages) were temporarily sheltered in at least 613 evacuation centers.

In Batangas province, Joselito Castro, the provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) officer, reported that as of 5 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 30, at least 1,772 families composed of 6,609 persons were still under the care of the government in 108 evacuation centers.

The report said another 380 displaced families or 1,466 individuals have sought refuge outside of the evacuation centers and have been staying with their relatives and friends.

Meanwhile, Rizal disaster management council in a report said that as of 2 a.m. Sunday, 2,140 families, composed of 9,035 individuals, were still in evacuation centers in different parts of the province.

The report also said that another 26 families or 77 persons, opted to stay outside the government’s temporary settlements.

The evacuees were being attended to by local social workers and health authorities who imposed strict health protocols to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and other infectious diseases at the evacuation centers.

Meanwhile, Cavite Governor Jonvic Remulla said at least 18,000 in the province were displaced during the onslaught of storm Paeng, though some of them, without providing specific figures, have already returned home as of Sunday.

“Our calamity response is nonstop in hard hit areas like Noveleta and Kawit. At least P50 million worth of relief goods are being distributed,” Remulla said in a post on his Facebook Sunday afternoon.

He said Noveleta town was the worst hit. “Four retaining walls along the river collapsed,” the governor said.

/MUF