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Thick mud and debris covered many villages around the Philippine capital on Friday after Typhoon Ulysses caused major flooding that sent people fleeing to their roofs and killed at least 39 people.
Thousands of people have been rescued, although the waters have mostly receded. The army was rescuing people in places where the waters were still high.
Amphibious assault vehicles commonly used in counter-insurgency operations were deployed for rescue work, Philippine Armed Forces Chief of Staff Gen. Gilbert Gapay said in an emergency meeting with disaster response officials.
“We will continue to search for the missing, assisting in the damage assessment,” Gapay said. It reported 39 deaths and another 32 missing people.
Typhoon Ulysses (international code name Vamco) passed north of Manila between the provinces of Bulacan and Pampanga during the night of Wednesday and early Thursday, knocking down power poles and trees, destroying crops and damaging homes.
More than 350,000 people had been evacuated to safety, mainly residents fleeing coastal areas and vulnerable lowlands before the typhoon struck. The Philippine National Police said more than 100,000 people had been rescued, including 41,000 in the capital region.
At least 3.8 million homes were without power in metro Manila and outlying provinces, but crews have restored power in many areas and power was expected to be fully restored in about three days. Government offices were closed and classes suspended in public schools on Friday.
The typhoon hit the Philippines in the immediate aftermath of Typhoon Rolly (international code name Goni), one of the strongest typhoons in the world this year, which left more than 30 people dead or missing and damaged or destroyed 270,000 houses. Tens of thousands of people remain displaced.
The Philippines is hit by about 20 typhoons and tropical storms each year and also had active earthquake faults and volcanoes, making it one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world.
Covid, leptospirosis warning
The Department of Health (DOH) has pre-placed medical supplies and health kits worth more than P26 million in areas hard hit by recent typhoons.
The Secretary of Health, Francisco T. Duque III, also reminded the public to strictly observe the minimum standards of public health.
“As we experience typhoons during this time, we must wear a face mask at all times to prevent Covid-19 and other respiratory infections,” said Duque in the Philippines.
Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH) -Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) strongly warned residents not to paddle in the floods to avoid contracting leptospirosis.
“The recent avalanche of typhoons has caused massive flooding in the low-lying communities of the region and everyone must be careful when threading these waters, as they may be contaminated with the Leptospira bacteria from the urine of infected rats,” said Regional Director Eduardo C Janairo. .
Leptospirosis is endemic during the rainy season. Symptoms include high fever, muscle pain, red eyes, chills, severe headache, and yellowing of the skin.
MMDA team for the rehabilitation of Marikina
The Manila Metropolitan Development Authority (MMDA) deployed another composite team on Friday to assist in the rehabilitation of affected areas in the city of Marikina following the devastation caused by Typhoon Ulysses.
“We have dispatched our men to severely damaged areas in the city of Marikina to remove debris, clear obstructions and collect household waste in coordination with the city’s Office of Disaster Risk Reduction and Management,” said MMDA President Danilo. Lim, after dispatching staff from Metro Parkways Clearing Group, The Highway Emergency Group, and the Public Safety Division to assist the local Marikina city government in its ongoing cleanup and rehabilitation efforts.
In addition to the labor, dump trucks, forwarders, backhoes and other heavy equipment needed to clear road obstructions were deployed in the worst-hit city in the National Capital Region (NCR).
“Our men are equipped with cleaning tools to transport trash and thick mud from the affected areas,” Lim said.
Lim, concurrent chairman of the Metro Manila Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (MMDRRMC), also directed concerned agency staff to ensure that all major roads in Metro Manila are passable.
According to the MMDA Metro Manila Crisis Monitoring and Management Center’s monitoring of the flooding situation in Metro Manila, all major roads flooded on Thursday are now passable.
Previously, Lim asked various Metro local government units to provide assistance to Marikina and other cities that had been severely devastated by the typhoon.
At the height of Typhoon Ulysses, MMDA staff assisted in the rescue and evacuation of affected people, assisted in crowd control and managed the flow of traffic in the affected cities of the metropolis.
Ambulances, rubber boats, truck-mounted cranes, backhoes, water pumps, rescue equipment were also sent.
AP with Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco
