THE fatalities caused by Super Typhoon Goni (local name: Rolly) have risen to 25, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said on Wednesday, November 4.
The breakdown of casualties were: 21 from Bicol, three from Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) and one from Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan).
PNP Chief Gen. Camilo Cascolan also said 43 persons sustained injuries, 39 of which were from Bicol, and four from Calabarzon.
He added that two people are missing in Calabarzon, one in Mimaropa, and three in Bicol.
Meanwhile, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported that a total of 2,083,222 individuals or 532,794 families were devastated by Rolly in Regions II, III, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol, and the National Capital Region.
Of the figure, 142,475 families or 517,172 people are being assisted in evacuation centers.
Response
Malacañang said it sees no problem in realigning a portion of the proposed budget for the anti-communist task force to aid areas battered by Rolly as it is “within mandate” of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict’s (NTF-ELCAC).
“I think that’s the objective of the ELCAC… to promote development in areas with ongoing insurgencies because we know that poverty is still the root cause of insurgency,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said Wednesday.
“So I don’t think there is any inconsistency with the proposal to actually spend funds in typhoon damaged areas because, I think, it is a fact that Bicol also is a hotbed for insurgency,” he added.
The statement came after Senator Risa Hontiveros proposed to reallocate a portion of the NTF-ELCAC’s P19-billion budget for 2021 to aid victims of Rolly.
The Philippine Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), for its part, said it is looking into providing emergency shelter assistance to affected families by the typhoon.
“While the economy is disrupted in the (Bicol) region, we are looking at providing emergency shelter assistance to families whose homes were destroyed by the typhoon,” said Secretary Rolando Bautista.
The agency also said that over ₱8.3 million worth of aid has been given to people who were affected by Rolly.
The Philippine Department of Health (DOH), meanwhile, granted P20 million worth of financial assistance to hospitals in areas battered by Rolly.
According to Health Undersecretary Rosario Vergeire, the aid was distributed to three DOH hospitals and affected areas and cities in Bicol.
P5 million went to Bicol Regional Training ang Teaching Hospital in Legazpi, Albay; another P5 million went to Bicol Medical Center in Naga City, Camarines Sir (P5 million); and P2 million went to Bicol Region General Hospital and Geriatric Medical Center in Cabusao, Camarines Sur.
The province of Camarines Sur received P2 million, while Albay and Catanduanes received P1.5 million each. Naga City received P1.2 million, while Camarines Norte, Masbate, and Sorsogon received P600,000 each.
