A total of 150 people are now part of the death toll resulting from the combined effects of Severe Tropical Storm “Kristine” and Super Typhoon “Leon,” according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) on Thursday.
In its 8 a.m. report, the NDRRMC indicated that 29 people are also reported missing, while 115 others have sustained injuries. The figures for deaths, injuries, and missing persons are still subject to validation.
According to the NDRRMC, the combined impact of “Kristine” and “Leon” affected 7.4 million people, which equates to approximately 1.89 million families across 17 regions, 81 provinces, 927 cities and municipalities, and 10,921 barangays in the country.
The Bicol Region has been hit the hardest, with 623,450 families affected, amounting to about 2.68 million individuals.
Currently, 827 areas across 13 regions remain submerged in deep floods, while 777 roads and 103 bridges are impassable due to severe weather conditions.
Damage to agriculture has risen to 2.9 billion pesos, while infrastructure damage has reached 6.3 billion pesos.
The NDRRMC stated that a total of 211 areas across eight regions have declared a state of calamity, with Calabarzon declaring the highest number of such statuses, followed by Region 5.
On Wednesday, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) urged residents of northern Luzon to take precautionary measures in preparation for Super Typhoon Leon, which may affect up to five million individuals.
OCD spokesperson Director Edgar Posadas said that while Leon is moving closer to Batanes, its trough may also impact parts of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
This includes Central Luzon, CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, the Bicol Region, Western Visayas, Eastern Visayas, the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
“Based on the predictive analysis of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the number of people that may be affected is around 2.5 million to five million individuals,” Posadas noted.
He assured the public that there are more than enough food packs available for the estimated potential typhoon victims.
“We have prepositioned more than 1.5 million family food packs,” he confirmed.
Posadas cautioned that areas already affected by flooding from Tropical Storm Kristine are at risk of re-flooding.
He reiterated that most of the OCD’s regional offices are on red alert due to the impending weather disturbance.
“Because we are on red alert, we have available resources at our disposal,” he said.
