There is no need to declare a national state of calamity after Severe Tropical Storm Paeng ravaged different parts of the country because the damage was “highly localized,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Monday.
Paeng weakened into a tropical storm status on Sunday but intensified again into a severe tropical storm on Monday as it continued to move over the West Philippine Sea, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.
Marcos’s statement came a day after the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) recommended a declaration of a national state of calamity.
“I don’t think it’s necessary. I came to that conclusion in consultation with DENR [Department of Environment and Natural Resources]. They said it wasn’t extensive. The damage is highly localized,” he told reporters in a press briefing in Noveleta, Cavite.
Citing government reports, he said only three provinces—Quezon, Cavite, and Maguindanao—suffered the most damage to infrastructure.
“We’re talking about the east coast Quezon, here in Cavite, and then Maguindanao. Those are the areas. It doesn’t warrant a national calamity,” he said.
Marcos said it was enough for the NDRRMC to implement the state of calamity status in specific areas only.
“I think we will focus better if we stay with the calamity status as we have now,” he added.
On Sunday, the NDRRMC declared a state of calamity in 55 areas in the Bicol (Region 5), Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), and Soccsksargen (Region 12).
These areas were heavily damaged by Paeng, which brought massive flooding and landslides that resulted in casualties.
The NDRRMC said the storm damaged 4,188 houses worth about P12.415 million and did infrastructure damage worth P757.84 million.
On Monday morning, Marcos conducted an aerial survey over areas hit by the severe tropical storm, particularly parts of Cavite.
He also led the ceremonial distribution of aid to families in Barangay San Jose II in Noveleta, Cavite, and assured them that the government will ensure their safe return to their homes.
Marcos earlier presided over a full council meeting of the NDRRMC on Saturday.
During the meeting, Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Assistant Secretary Cristina Clasara reported that there was enough money in the NDRRM Fund.
Marcos assured the victims of Paeng that they would get the assistance they need from the government to get back on their feet.
The President said he is eyeing a long-term solution to the flooding problem in Cavite, one of the hardest hit by Paeng when it battered the country over the weekend.
“We’ll have a long-term plan so that if the water currents are strong, it will not destroy the surrounding areas and will not make landslides which will be the problem later on,” Marcos said.
The Municipality of Noveleta, along with Kawit, is one of the hardest-hit areas in Cavite as severe rains from the uplands caused heavy flooding leading to the destruction of a river wall near the Ylang-Ylang River.
About 18,000 families have been evacuated in Cavite, the authorities said.
At least P50 million worth of relief goods are being distributed to the victims of the natural calamity.
With a diameter of over 1,100 kilometers, Tropical Storm Paeng made a series of landfall across different regions in the country and brought severe flooding, particularly in Mindanao.