Provincial council declares Northern Samar in state of calamity

Northern Samar has been placed under a state of calamity due to various incidents of flashfloods that devastated about a hundred villages across the province brought about by tropical storm “Urduja” (international name: Kai-Tak).

This development came after the Northern Samar provincial council on Saturday signed Resolution No. 230 declaring the whole province under a state of calamity as Urduja is set to make a landfall in the province Saturday afternoon or evening.

Rei Echano, head of the Northern Samar provincial disaster risk reduction and management office, said in a television interview that floods have inundated about 121 barangays in the province, prompting 10,669 persons or 2,672 households to take shelter in higher grounds.

“The provincial governor has instructed all mayors of 24 towns to do preemptive evacuation yesterday. It is still being undertaken right now to the remotest area of our place,” Echano told CNN Philippines in an interview.

“Likewise, the provincial government has positioned augmentation for relief goods for the evacuees in strategic places,” he said, adding that evacuation centers still have power supply.

Under a state of calamity, local governments would have faster access to calamity funds to rebuild their communities and held the residents during evacuation.

Northern Samar is the second province reported to have declared a state of calamity, following Tacloban City which made the announcement on Friday.

READ: Local gov’t places Tacloban under state of calamity

The Northern and Eastern Samar will be directly hit when Urduja makes a landfall, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).

The tropical storm remained almost stationary in its track, bringing persistent rains while moving toward the Visayas, the state weather bureau said. /jpv