Despite their repeated calls for choppers, none have arrived. Pangasinan authorities said they have no other recourse but to pray for the victims of tropical depression "Pepeng."
"Humingi kami ng chopper pero walang dumadating. [Kaya] Idinadaan na lang namin sa prayers (We asked for choppers but none arrived. That is why we are just left to pray for the safety of the victims)," said Urbiztondo mayor Ernesto Balolong on Saturday over ANC.
According to Balolong, rescue efforts have been hampered by having only two rubber boats. Worse, rescuers manning these seacraft are exhausted from rescue operations that began Friday.
"Marami tayong taong naiwan doon sa riverside. Sa bawat bahay kasi nag-iiwan sila ng isang lalaki [para bantayan]. Hindi namin mapilit (We have a lot of people still by the river side. In every household they leave a man to guard the house. We can't force them)," Balolong said.
The situation in Urbiztondo reflects the natural forces arrayed against poorly equipped provincial governments struggling to save lives and property ravaged by the widespread floods in northern Luzon.
The death toll in northern Luzon has surged to 195, with most victims killed by landslides and floods. [See: 'Pepeng' moves out of RP, rains loom over western Luzon]
Weather forecasters on Saturday said Pepeng – which has been hovering over the country for the last 10 days – is expected to be out of the Philippine area of responsibility by Sunday morning.
But even as Pepeng moved further away from the country, portions of a number of provinces are still submerged in floodwaters and hundreds of victims remain trapped in their rooftops.
In Pangasinan, only a small fraction of the province remained dry after record levels of flooding submerged over 30 towns and cities starting Friday, including Dagupan City and Urbiztondo town.
The floods were triggered by the heavy downpour from Pepeng, and further aggravated by the release of water from the San Roque Dam along Agno River.
The National Disaster Coordinating Council said the other Pangasinan towns where dikes collapsed due to heavy flooding include Rosales, Bued, Tayug, and San Fabian. [See: No truth to text messages that San Roque dam is collapsing - NDCC]
Boots Velasco of the Pangasinan public information office told GMANews.TV over the phone that five villages in Urdaneta City are still buried in six to seven-foot floodwaters.
Velasco said many have already been rescued in the city using rubber boats and choppers.
Tarlac, Nueva Ecija
A radio report said floods have subsided in portions of Nueva Ecija, but 13 towns remain inundated after the Pantabangan Dam earlier released water for the dam’s protection.
In Jaen town, floodwaters remain at least six-foot high because of the swollen Pampanga River.
In Tarlac province, GMA reporter Dano Tingcungco said villagers were caught off guard when floodwaters suddenly rose, forcing them to climb up to their rooftops, where many remain trapped as of Saturday noon.
The provincial government said 17 of the 21 villages in La Paz town remain flooded as of posting time.
La Paz Mayor Benito Emmanuel said at least one person has died in the province due to heart attack after floods swept the region.
Stranded
In Lucao village, Dagupan City , several vehicles were stranded because they could not get further into the heart of the city, where the floods had reached waist-level.
Resureccion Aganon, driver of a Fermina Express bus, said early Saturday that he and his 11 remaining passengers from Quezon City have been stranded at Bgy. Lubao since 1 a.m.
“Kagabi pa kami nagugutom eh (We’ve gone without food since last night)," he said.
The bus left Cubao at 7 p.m. and traveled to Dagupan through Lingayen, Pangasinan via Camiling Road in Tarlac, a passable route. But they were stopped by the floodwaters on the outskirts of the city.
Passenger Allan Sirain, 33, said he was worried because he could not reach his family through mobile phone.
Meanwhile, 46-year-old fish vendor Nancy Viray of Barangay Lasip in Malasiqui town and her cousins have been stranded in Lucao since 7 p.m. of Friday.
“Kukuha kami ng isda sana, paninda naming doon (We were supposed to get fish that we were to sell)," Viray said.
She feared that the plastic basins they use to carry their fish products would weigh them down while wading through thick flood.
Bonifacio Gadian, another stranded person, came all the way from Hawaii to check up on his relatives in San Manuel town.
He has been stuck with his wife in their van since they arrived in Pangisinan Thursday night, and have been sleeping in the van with other relatives who met them at the airport.
source
No comments:
Post a Comment