Thursday, June 26, 2008 P336M in infra, crops destroyed
MORE than P336 million worth of infrastructure, agriculture and government facilities were damaged by tropical storm ‘Frank’ in the three towns of Bantayan Island, Cebu.
Bantayan town alone recorded P215 million worth of damage to poultry, excluding the damages to agriculture and infrastructure.
Madridejos town reported P111 million worth of damage to infrastructure, agriculture and government properties, while P10 million worth of damage to poultry were reported by Sta. Fe..
Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday met the mayors of the three towns in the island and assessed the extent of the damage caused by the storm.
Before her meeting, Garcia conducted an aerial inspection of the whole island on board a chopper.
Garcia said she saw for herself how the typhoon tremendously wrought the island, particularly the poultry industry.
The governor also met with poultry raisers in Bantayan town and discussed possible help the Province could extend.
But she wanted an inventory and assessment of the damaged poultries so the Provincial Agriculture Office could determine the assistance for affected poultry raisers.
The Department of Agriculture 7 said it may release its loan fund provided the poultry raisers could provide the agency with comprehensive report on the incident.
Bantayan Mayor Geralyn Escario-Cañares said that about 60 poultry raisers were affected.
But she said the figure may be higher because other poultry owners failed to report the incident to the town government.
Distribution
Cañares said they will release P2 million from the calamity fund for the typhoon victims.
Cañares said four coastal barangays in Bantayan, Cebu remained underwater.
These are Barangays Kangka-Ibe, Kampingganon, Sulangan and Putian.
Authorities reported that 20 persons remained missing in Bantayan Island.
For her part, Sta. Fe Mayor Jennifer Ilustrisimo said over 3,000 families in her town were affected by the calamity.
Governor Garcia yesterday led the distribution of relief goods including blankets and mattresses to victims of typhoon in Bantayan Island.
Partial report
A partial report of the Regional Disaster Coordinating Council (RDCC) 7 as of 5 p.m. of June 24 stated that regionwide, damage to infrastructure was initially pegged at P24.553 million while damage in agriculture has initially reached P149,097,500.
Neil Angelo Sanchez, chief of RDCC 7 operations center said they will come up with a final report within the week.
The RDCC has recommended extending assistance to the victims of the typhoon that would be taken from the national calamity fund.
Sanchez said the RDCC 7 has initially received 370 sacks of rice from the National Disaster Coordinating Council, which has been distributed to the beneficiaries of the Cebu’s fourth district.
A total of 1,117 families or 4,459 individuals in Central Visayas were left homeless by the storm, most of them are from Cebu’s northern towns.
Of the nine reported fatalities in the region, eight are in Cebu – six in Bantayan Island and two from the town of Medellin.
Those who died in Bantayan Island were identified as Nenita M. Hibanada, 32, who was four months pregnant and her one and six-month-old daughter Kristine; Restituti A. Pacilan, Pedro Y. Ducay, 40; Fausto F. Sarsuello, 60, and Pablo M. Cordova, 55.
In Medellin, the victims were Epifania B. Bacolod, 60, and her nine-year-old grandson Reneboy.
The ninth fatality was identified as Jorge Salao, 33, of Poblacion, Mabini, Bohol Province.
Twenty-two people, who were crew members of fb Mary Ann, which was anchored off the seawaters of Baigad, Bantayan Island, Cebu, and another person, who was thrown off from a boat anchored along the waters of the Visayan sea remained missing until yesterday.
The RDCC report said electricity in the Municipalities of San Remigio, Borbon, Catmon, Tabuelan, Asturias, Sogod and the towns of Camotes Island and in Bogo City have been restored. (GMD/JST)
