17 dead, loss to property almost P1B due to ‘Nona’ onslaught

ALL-WEATHER VEHICLES With downpour from Typhoon “Nona” washing away roads and rice fields, residents in Barangay (village) Rajal Sur in Santa Rosa, Nueva Ecija province, rely on carabao power (left) to get them to their destinations. In La Paz, Tarlac province, the “kuliglig” (tractor) is reinvented as a ferry (right), as it transports commuters across the flooded plains. NIÑO JESUS ORBETA/INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Official death toll from former Typhoon “Nona” (international name: “Melor”) increased to 17 on Friday, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said.

Deaths from Calabarzon were at four; seven in Mimaropa; four in Bicol; and three in Samar provinces. Twenty persons were injured from Nona’s aftermath.

READ: ‘Nona’ batters S. Luzon; 11 dead

There were 76,796 families or 222,438 persons still sheltered in evacuation centers in Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol and Eastern Visayas, the NDRRMC said.

Loss to property was also close to P1 billion. A total of P935,192,943.51 damage to agriculture and infrastructure was recorded so far, the NDRRMC said.

READ: Loss to property increased to P320 million due to ‘Nona’—NDRRMC

Bicol region recorded a big chunk of the losses with an estimated P181 million to crops and an estimated P295 million to high value commercial crops.

As of Thursday, two cities and 14 municipalities are still experiencing power interruption, the NDRRMC said.

At its peak, Nona packed maximum sustained winds of 150 kilometers per hour (kph) and gusts of up to 185 kph.

It made landfall six times—in Batag, Northern Samar; Bulusan, Sorsogon; Burias Island; Banton Sorsogon; Pinamalayan, Oriental Mindoro; and Lubang Island, Oriental Mindoro.

Nona dumped heavy rains, damaging roads and bridges and toppled power and communication lines. It also canceled dozens of domestic flights and suspended classes in parts of Samar provinces and Luzon. RAM