spot_img
27.4 C
Philippines
Tuesday, March 19, 2024

13 Pangasinan towns under water

- Advertisement -

The effects of Severe Tropical Storm “Inday” and the southwest monsoon or “habagat” continued to wreak havoc on Luzon and some parts of the Visayas region on Friday.

Water everywhere. In this photo from the Office of Civil Defense, an Air Force helicopter flies over flooded rice fields in Pangasinan. The Northern Luzon province saw 13 towns submerged by steady monsoon rains.

Heavy rainfall left at least 13 towns in Pangasinan province under floodwaters, led to widespread class suspensions, and caused at least P6 million in damages to crops and infrastructure, mostly in Occidental Mindoro, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said in a statement.

“Inday” (international name Ampil) was expected to exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Saturday morning, but it was still enhancing the “habagat” as it was moving northwest.

At 11 a.m. Friday, the storm was estimated at 945 kilometers east northeast of Basco, Batanes, with maximum sustained winds of 90 kms per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 115 km/h.

Taking the place of “Inday” is a new low-pressure area spotted 475 kilometers west of Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, which the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said could enter the PAR this weekend.

- Advertisement -

Both the storm and the LPA were pulling in the southwest monsoon, leading to torrential rainfall across much of Luzon and flooding the Pangasinan cities of Alaminos, Urdaneta and Lingayen and the towns of Bani, Mangatarem, Calasiao, Sta. Barbara, Labrador, Mabini, Bugallon, Malasiqui, Agno, and Natividad. 

Landslides were noted in the town of Sual, and some rivers in the province were swelling their banks, as water levels hit critical marks. These include the Marusay River in Calasiao, Balingcaguing River in Bani, and Sinocalan River in Sta. Barbara, local officials said.

Residents in several parts of Urdaneta were wading in waist-deep floodwaters as non-stop monsoon rains continued.

In Central Luzon, a combination of heavy rain and high tide affected about 40,469 families, rendering roads unpassable and classes suspended.

The Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported about 172,870 affected persons who were given family food packs by the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

Bobby Manalo, operation officer of the RDRRMC in Central Luzon, said about 39,125 families or about 166,313 persons were given food packs outside the evacuation center, while about 189 families composed of 718 persons inside the 16 evacuation centers in the region.

Manalo said evacuees come from 171 barangays mostly in the coastal towns of Pampanga, Bulacan, Bataan, Tarlac, and Zambales.

According to Manalo, some roads in the region were destroyed by rampaging floodwaters, rendering them impassable to light and heavy vehicles like the Daang Maharlika Road in Barangay Capistahan in Caranglan, Nueva Ecija.

“The other roads not passable are the Sto. Tomas-Minalin road in Telecsan, Macabebe, Pampanga due to six meters of flood water; Sto. Tomas-Minalin road in San Isidro Minalin, and the road leading to barangay Bueno in Capas, Tarlac where only light vehicle are allowed to pass,” Manalo said.  

Monsoon rains will also prevail over Metro Manila, Ilocos, Cordillera Administrative Region, Bataan, Zambales, Bulacan, Pampanga, Tarlac and Nueva Ecija, Pagasa forecaster Chris Perez said.

Occasional rains will persist over the rest of Luzon, while the Visayas and Mindanao will experience only partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rainshowers.

Perez said the LPA is likely to enter the Philippine area of responsibility within the next 24 hours.

“Beyond that period [of 24 hours], let us see the reactions of the LPA once it reaches the landmass of Luzon. It could dissipate or disorganize, or reorganize,” he said.

If the LPA develops into a tropical depression, it would be named “Josie,” Perez said. With PNA

- Advertisement -

LATEST NEWS

Popular Articles