Tropical Depression ''Josie,'' with sustained winds of 45 kph near the center while moving west northwest of Pinili in Ilocos Norte this weekend, has forced weathermen to raise Cyclone Warning Signal 1.
Josie, which was previously a low-pressure area, has raised Signal 1 in Batanes, northern Cagayan including the Babuyan Group of Islands, Ilocos Norte, the northern part of Ilocos Sur and the northern part of Abra in the Cordilleras.
In related developments:
• Three casualties were reported in Central Luzon following heavy monsoon rains even as wide areas of coastal villages remain under three to four feet of floodwaters as of Saturday.
The regional office of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Central Luzon reported the first casualty as Irene Espanola Agno of San Simon, Pampanga.
Agno was swimming in the river when he (correct) was carried away by rampaging floodwaters and drowned. His body was fished out by residents.
Injured were Divina Purificacion and Orlando Waing, both of Apalit, also in Pampanga. They were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.
No other casualties were reported in other parts of the region as of Saturday.
Rainer Gorospe, information officer of the DSWD in Region 3 said they continued distributing family food packs to the residents of the coastal towns of Lubao and Masantol in Pampanga and Bagac, Bataan numbering 4,004 packs worth P5,097.200.
The floods situation in the coastal towns Pampanga, Bulacan and Bataan deteriorated during high tide and heavy rains, threatening the marine industry of the privinces.
Gorospe said they were seeking additional family food packs totaling 13,345 packs worth P4,752,000 for towns of Baler, San Luis, Dilasag, Casiguran in Aurora and towns of Bulacan, Zambales and Bataan.
• Adverse weather conditions brought about by Tropical Storm ''Henry'' and Severe Tropical Storm''Inday'' have so far affected 46,877 families in 222 barangays in Ilocos, Central Luzon, Western Visayas, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, and the National Capital Region.
In an update released Friday night, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council executive director Ricardo Jalad said the 46,877 families consisted of 190,081 individuals.
Of these, 711 families or 2,581 persons are being assisted in 34 evacuation centers while 39,126 families or 166,322 individuals are receiving help outside evacuation centers.
According to Jalad, the casualties from the two weather disturbances were still being verified.
He also reported that 207 areas in Ilocos, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, the Cordillera region and NCR were flooded.
Meanwhile, the Department of Social Welfare and Development and various local government units have extended P6,164,260 worth of assistance to affected families in Central Luzon, Western Visayas, and Mimaropa.
• The City Council placed Dagupan City under a state of calamity in a resolution approved Saturday due to continuous rains and flooding caused by the storm-enhanced southwest monsoon.
In a radio interview, Councilor Jose Netu Tamayo said the resolution was passed during a special session at the recommendation of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office and the request of Mayor Belen Fernandez.
“Mayor Fernandez requested that our city be put under a state of calamity after the nearby Sinocalan River in Sta. Barbara has breached its dikes, causing the water to overflow in Dagupan,” he said.
As of Saturday morning, all roads in the city were no longer passable to light vehicles, while several barangays were flooded, among them Mayombo, Pantal, Lucao, Tapuac, Barangays I, II, III, and IV, among others, the CDRRMO reported.
Ronald de Guzman, head of the CDRRMO, said that despite the flooding in the city, no casualty had been reported so far.
“We expect more water coming from upstream, as the city is the ‘catch basin’ of the Sinocalan River System, eventually leading to the open sea,” he said.
According to Republic Act No. 8185, local government units under a state of calamity shall set aside 5 percent of the estimated revenue from regular sources as annual lump sum appropriation for relief, rehabilitation or reconstruction and other works or services in connection with calamities that may occur during the budget year.