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Thursday, July 01, 2004
Typhoon kills 7, displaces thousands
MANILA -- Seven people died, six others were injured and another two missing in the wake of Typhoon Igme (international codename: Mindulle) as it buffeted the country Wednesday.
Rescue officials said three drowned in flash floods in the southern towns of Alamada and Maasim towns on Mindanao island, while three were killed in an accident on a rain-slicked road in the northern town of Tabuk.
A man, meanwhile, died of exposure to the elements in the northern coastal town of Pagudpud.
One other person was missing in flash floods in the southern town of Libungan and a man was missing after being swept away by rampaging waters in the Abra River near Sallapadan town.
The National Disaster Coordinating Council said 7,000 families were affected by the typhoon and were relocated to various evacuation centers in the towns of Dingras, Pagudpud, San Nicolas and Laoag City in Ilocos Norte, San Fernando City in La Union, Baguio City, Apayao, Benguet and Abra.
Mindulle brushed past the northeastern part of the country Tuesday before streaking toward southern Taiwan, cutting power and telecommunications lines and inducing heavy rain that caused landslides and flooding, displacing thousands and disrupting road traffic, rescue officials said.
Ferry services in the islands were mostly suspended as the authorities barred small seacraft from putting to sea, coastguard chief Arthur Gosingan said.
Manila airport authorities said two domestic flights were cancelled Wednesday, but international flights were not affected.
Damage to property was estimated at P20 million.
Some barangays in Cagayan remain flooded while several major roads in the Cordillera Autonomous Region (CAR), including the well-known Kennon Road in Baguio City, were rendered impassable due to flood and landslide.
Local officials of the affected areas provided the evacuees with relief goods that would last for three days.
The Department of Education (DepEd) suspended classes in the elementary and high school levels in Metro Manila and other provinces in Luzon.
Storm signal 4 was hoisted over northern Cagayan, Calayan Group of Islands and Batanes Group while signal number 3 was raised over Apayao, Kalinga, Abra, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur and the rest of Cagayan.
Those under storm signal 2 were Isabela, Ifugao, Mt. Province, Benguet, La Union and Pangasinan while storm signal 1 was hoisted over Quirino, Nueva Vizcaya, Aurora, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Zambales, Bataan, Pampanga, Cavite, Bulacan, Rizal, northern Aurora, Lubang Island, Occidental Mindoro, Calamian Group and Metro Manila.
Typhoon Igme is expected to be 110 kilometers northwest of Aparri, Cagayan by Thursday and Friday and 420 kilometers west southwest of Basco, Batanes by Saturday morning before it leaves the country's area of responsibility. (Sunnex Luzon/AFP)
(July 1, 2004 issue)
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