OCD reports 81 deaths amid ‘Kristine’ onslaught

By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora, Philippine News Agency

MANILA – The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) has reported 81 fatalities amid the onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Kristine (international name Trami) that tore through several parts of the country this week.

At the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City, OCD administrator Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno said this number is still “subject to validation” to determine if the deaths were directly related to the storm.

“Iyong 81 reported casualties, ito ay galing sa regional offices ng Office of Civil Defense. Iyan naman ay ive-verify pa ng Philippine National Police (PNP) at isu-submit nila sa Department of the Interior and Local Government (The 81 casualties were reported by our regional offices. That will still be verified by the PNP, who would submit it to the DILG),” he said.

More than half of the casualties were recorded in the Calabarzon region with 48, followed by Bicol with 28.

Based on the data released by OCD, at least two were killed in the Cordillera region, one in Ilocos, one in Central Luzon, and one in Zamboanga Peninsula.

The number of missing persons rose to 34, most of whom are believed to have been trapped due to landslides.

“Hopefully, makita pa yung iba doon, subalit karamihan kasi diyan natabunan. Nagkaroon ng maraming landslides tayo (Hopefully, we can still find them but most of them were victims of landslides),” he said.

Continuous response, sufficient relief goods

Meanwhile, Nepomuceno assured continuous disaster response operations, with relevant agencies, such as the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Department of Health (DOH) providing relief items to affected communities nationwide.

He added the Philippine Air Force has enough air assets to ferry goods to impacted regions.

”Nailusot na natin ‘yong from Legazpi. So, from the south, papanik ng Naga at ‘yong mga ibang karatig na areas (We were able to deliver in Legazpi. So, from the south we will travel up to Naga and other nearby areas),” he said.

“Dire-diretsyo na ‘yong pagtulong ng pamahalaan, ready naman tayo. Ang DSWD maintains at least around 2 million family food packs at any given time. Sapat iyan, huwag tayong kabahan diyan (The assistance of the government is non-stop. We are ready. And the DSWD maintains at least about 2 million family food packs at any given time. That’s sufficient, there’s no need to worry about that),” he added.

Nepomuceno said more than 4 million individuals were “severely affected” by the storm that caused widespread flooding in Luzon, especially in the Bicol region.