Luis out; new LPA spotted

MANILA, Philippines - Typhoon Luis left the country yesterday after causing flashfloods and power interruptions in Northern Luzon, as weather forecasters started monitoring a low-pressure area that could develop into another storm in a few days.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said if the low-pressure area becomes a storm, it would be named Mario.

“It is still a low-pressure area. Many things can happen. It may enter the Philippine area of responsibility or dissipate,” PAGASA weather forecaster Aldczar Aurelio said in a press briefing.

The new low-pressure area was located 2,000 kilometers east of the Visayas yesterday afternoon.

PAGASA said Luis was out of the country as of 11 a.m. and was moving toward the southern part of China.

The southwest monsoon is expected to bring rains over Bataan, Zambales, Palawan and Mindoro and moderate to strong winds over Luzon and Western Visayas.

Metro Manila and the rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms.

Luis, the 12th weather disturbance to hit the country this year, slammed into Northern Luzon on Sunday evening, bringing heavy rains that caused flashfloods as strong winds damaged power lines and plunged several provinces into darkness.

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II have declared zero casualty as they excluded the six deaths from the sinking of a passenger ferry off the coast of Southern Leyte last Saturday from the list of Typhoon Luis-related casualties.

However, field reports showed that an uprooted mango tree in Piat, Cagayan, pinned down a house and killed a one-month-old baby boy.

“I think that the important thing when it comes to casualties, as of this morning, there is no casualty,” said Roxas during a National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council disaster briefing held yesterday in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.

Roxas, vice chairman of the NDRRMC, also said the typhoon-affected families were already returning to their homes after an overnight stay in evacuation centers, mostly in northern Luzon.

But Bonifacio Cuarteros, head of the Cagayan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, said the one-month-old baby died when a mango tree fell on their house in Barangay Sto. Domingo in Piat, Cagayan.

Piat police chief Senior Inspector Noel Magbitang identified the victim as Javier Mateo.

Cuarteros said the incident happened at around 9 p.m. on Sunday while the typhoon was pummeling Cagayan and the province of Isabela.

Cuarteros said that 772 persons who had earlier evacuated have returned home, while technicians are working to restore power in Cagayan.

Typhoon Luis made landfall near the boundary of Isabela and Cagayan at sundown last Sunday.

Gazmin, also NDRRMC chairman, said they were continuing to monitor the effects of the typhoon, although he noted the well-planned preparation and coordination of government agencies.

He said they were looking at minimal damage on infrastructure, but not on agriculture, which he believed may have been affected the most.

Affected families

The storm, the NDRRMC said, has affected 3,842 families or 17,633 persons in Northern and Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog and Metro Manila.

As of 4 p.m. yesterday, there were still some 708 passengers stranded in the ports of Albay, Sorsogon, Catanduanes, Masbate and Camarines Sur, while 16 vessels and 83 rolling cargoes were still at port along with six motorized boats due to prevailing rough waters.

At least 12 roads and three bridges were unpassable to all types of land vehicles due to landslides and flashfloods in Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, the Bicol region and the Cordillera Administrative Region, NDRRMC said in a report.

In Isabela, a 60-year-old woman was electrocuted in her backyard in Barangay Gud in San Isidro.

The victim was gathering vegetables when she touched a live wire.

A motorcycle rider was reported missing after he was swept away by floodwaters while crossing the detour road under the Madori Bridge in Barangay Don Matias, Burgos, Pangasinan.

Burgos police chief Senior Inspector Amando Natividad Jr. identified the victim as Edmundo Dimatulak, 40, of Sitio Proper, Barangay San Rafael, Tarlac City.

The NDRRMC said the typhoon, packing winds of 160 kilometers per hour, made landfall near the boundary of Cagayan and Isabela around sundown and moved westward across Luzon.

Local officials suspended classes in all levels and closed government offices in Cagayan, Isabela, Pangasinan and Zambales.

Classes in all levels were also suspended in most cities in Metro Manila.

The strong winds caused power interruption in Baguio City, Apayao, Ifugao and Kalinga, the Office of Civil Defense-Cordillera said yesterday.

Landslides closed several roads in Kalinga, Mountain Province, Ifugao and Benguet.

Kennon Road, the main road to Baguio City, was also closed but reopened yesterday afternoon after government workers cleared boulders and rocks that rolled down the mountain at the height of the storm.

Alex Uy, director of the OCD-Cordillera, said at least 50 houses in Conner, Apayao were destroyed.

Three cities and 21 towns in Pangasinan were affected by Typhoon Luis, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported yesterday.

Retired police Superintendent Fernando de Guzman, officer-in-charge of the PDRRMC, said three teams from their Water and Search Rescue group are still assisting residents in the evacuation in the portions of Manaoag and San Fabian.

Several barangays were also reported to have been submerged in Alaminos City, Dagupan City, Urdaneta City, Calasiao, Sta. Barbara, San Jacinto, Tayug, Balungao, Laoac, San Fabian, Mangaldan, Binalonan, Pozorrubio, Manaoag, San Manuel, Aguilar, San Nicolas, Burgos, Tayug, Sison, Villasis, Rosales and Sta. Maria, following heavy rains brought by the storm.

Pangasinan Gov. Amado Espino Jr. suspended yesterday classes in all levels in the whole province.

The PDRRMC reported that strong winds destroyed a house in Binalonan town.

The Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC-3) said the storm affected more than 3,000 residents in Bulacan, Zambales, Nueva Ecija, Bataan and Aurora.

The Ipo and Bustos dams in Bulacan opened their gates and released water last Sunday after the water reached spilling level of 101 meters.

The water level of Angat Dam also in Bulacan rose by more than three meters to 188.48 meters, compared to the 185 meters recorded the other day.

Ship sinks in Manila Bay

A cargo vessel seeking shelter from strong winds capsized in Manila Bay last Sunday night.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) rescued all 15 crewmembers of M/V Super Shuttle RORO 7 after big waves battered the vessel at around 7 p.m.

The survivors were identified as Absolino Bolo, chief mate; Rodelio Robles, electrician; Junie Corpuz, boatswain; Mark Anthony Gonzales, engine cadet; and Randie Villarosa, oiler.

The crewmen were identified as Marciano Alburo, Rodney Cudiasa, Jeffrey Castir Fello, Joel Canaleta, Micheal Adlaon, Jeffrey Macapas, Romie Ladion Jr., Renante Serognas, Ramner Bacabes and Jonathan Guimaras.

The PCG said the survivors were brought to the PCG Medical Service clinic.

Six people earlier drowned while several others went missing after a passenger ferry sank off Southern Leyte on Saturday, the PCG said.

The PCG said 113 people were rescued 18 hours after the M/V Maharlika 2 sank off the coastal town of San Ricardo.

In Metro Manila, more than 8,000 residents were evacuated from low-lying areas in Marikina after the Marikina River swelled and reached 17.5 meters due to heavy rains brought by Typhoon Luis last Sunday night.

Marikina City Mayor Del de Guzman said the evacuees were brought to several public schools and later allowed to return to their houses when the floodwaters subsided yesterday morning.

The Philippines is hit by about 20 typhoons each year.

Typhoon Glenda killed 98 people and left five others missing in Luzon last July 16.

During the meeting at the NDRRMC, Roxas proposed a color-coded response from government agencies in times of disasters.

He said a protocol on disaster preparedness is to be used as a color-coded response by the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Health and the Department of Education.

Roxas said the ABC protocol on disasters include “Early Preparedness Actions towards Critical Period Actions.”

He said residents should be aware of evacuation centers in their area even if there is no weather disturbance, and to prepare beforehand the items needed when evacuating.

“There should be better preparation and not end up in a panic should an emergency arise,” said the DILG chief.

Although Luis has left the Philippine area of responsibility, Roxas reminded residents to continue monitoring their areas for possible flooding and heavy rains, and to coordinate with their local disaster risk reduction and management council.

Roxas said that the preemptive actions of local government units and residents for Typhoon Luis was a significant factor in the low casualty rate.

He said local government units are now better prepared for disasters, unlike in the past. With Non Alquitran, Edu Punay, Jaime Laude, Eva Visperas, Artemio Dumlao, Raymund Catindig, Cesar Ramirez