Philippine National Police remove fallen trees on Wednesday which were toppled at the onslaught of a slow-moving storm “Juaning” in Legazpi City, Albay. AP
MANILA, Philippines—At least 25 people have died, mostly in the Bicol region, including a family of five whose house was buried in a landslide in Camarines Norte, as Tropical Storm “Juaning” continued to slam into Luzon Wednesday, the Office of Civil Defense in Region V (Bicol) said.
National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council Executive Director Benito Ramos, however, told the INQUIRER.net on Wednesday evening that the death toll had climbed to 27, while 28 persons remained missing.
OCD Region V Director Rafaelito Alejandro said the victims died from drowning, electrocution, being hit by fallen trees and being buried in a landslide.
Alejandro said that of the 20 fatalities in Bicol as of posting time, nine were from Albay, five from Camarines Norte, four from Catanduanes and two from Camarines Sur.
According to Alejandro, nine persons were reported missing while 31 people were injured as of Wednesday afternoon.
Three persons were reported missing in Albay; two in Perez, Quezon; two in Catanduanes; one in Lucena City; and one in Camarines Norte.
Alejandro said a landslide occurred in Barangay (village) Sta. Rosa Norte, Jose Panganiban, Camarines Norte, at the home of the Casero family in the middle of the night around 1 a.m. Wednesday.
Alejandro said rescuers recovered the remains of the victims identified as Alfredo Casero, 62; Ofelia Casero, 56; Richard Casero, 23; Marian Casero, 18; and one-year old Edgar Casero.
Three children identified as Bernard Corteza, 10; Nicole Corteza, 7; and Josh Corteza, 4, were also killed in an earlier landslide in Gabon, Polangui, Albay.
The other reported fatalities were two in Cavite and one in Quezon (Region IV-A); one in Marinduque (Region IV-B) and one in Iloilo (Region VI).
“(The weather) is somehow starting to normalize. We had relief operations today. There are areas with flooding,” Alejandro said in a phone interview Wednesday afternoon.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported about 129,576 families, or 645,137 persons, were affected by Juaning, which dumped heavy rains. Most of the affected persons were from Camarines Sur and Albay.
The NDRRMC said Sorsogon has had no power since Tuesday 2:40 a.m. because the National Power Corp. shut down power as a precautionary measure at the height of the storm.
Marinduque is experiencing rotational brownouts after strong winds detached some electrical cables.
Flooding incidents were reported in several barangays in Daraga, Polangui, Ligao City, Oas and Legaspi City, all in Albay; and in Nabua, Baao, Bato, Buhi, Pasacao, Pamplona, Iriga City and Naga City, all in Camarines Sur.
Flash floods also hit several barangays in San Francisco, Mulanay and Lopez, all in Quezon province.
There were no reported flooded areas in Metro Manila as of Wednesday morning, according to the NDRRMC.
Heavy rains triggered landslides in Sitio (settlement) Caginsa, Barangay Casay, San Francisco in Quezon province.
There were 11 reported sea mishaps and eight landslides, of which seven occurred in Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Albay and Camarines Norte in Region V and one in San Francisco, Quezon, in Region IV-A.
Authorities said 30 people were saved at sea during the stormy weather including 15 crew members of a fishing boat swept away in Polilio Island in Quezon and nine fishermen in Marinduque.
Originally posted at 08:01 am | Wednesday, July 27, 2011