Thursday, May 22, 2008
'Cosme' death toll rises to 37
MANILA -- The National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) said the death toll from tropical storm Cosme that hit northern Luzon over the weekend has reached 37 as of Wednesday.
Latest NDCC reports revealed that of the total deaths, 28 were from Pangasinan while La Union registered six deaths; Zambales, two; and Benguet, one.
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Most of the deaths were hit by flying galvanized iron sheets, falling threes, and debris.
Of the 28 fatalities in Pangasinan, three were toddlers. They are two-year-old Miguel, three-year-old Randyl, and four-year-old Rodyl, all surnamed Poserio, who drowned in the Tanap River in Dagupan City.
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The NDCC also reported that 16 were injured, seven of them from Benguet.
One person, identified as Warlito Abat, remained missing as of Wednesday afternoon. NDCC said Abat was swept by strong current in San Juan, La Union.
A total of 22,816 houses in Pangasinan and La Union have also been destroyed while 51,932 others were damaged.
Most of the destroyed and damaged houses were in Pangasinan.
According to NDCC, Cosme has affected 182,930 families or 1,000,694 persons, but only 253 families or 1,378 persons are housed in evacuation centers.
Of the affected people, only 38,958 families or 206,593 persons have been served with assistance by various relief agencies, including the NDCC, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), concerned local government units (LGUs), and non-government organizations (NGOs).
At least 115 schools in Luzon, meanwhile, were destroyed by the typhoon.
Records of the Department of Education (DepEd) showed that 27 school buildings were destroyed in Ilocos Region alone, particularly in the municipalities of Bani, Anda, Binmaley, Lingayen, Aguilar, Mangatarem, Bugallon, Calasiao, and Malasiqui in Pangasinan I division.
In Pangasinan II division, nine schools were hit in San Carlos City; six in Rosario and Burgos in La Union; and seven in the municipalities of San Fabian, Mangaldon, Umingan, Manaoag, Pozzorubio, Sison and Binalonan.
In Central Luzon, a total of 25 schools in the municipalities of Candelaria, Iba and Masinloc (13 schools) and in Sta. Cruz (12 schools) in Zambales division were also affected by the storm.
DepEd said the total cost of damage in Ilocos Region is P116.116 million and P70.850 million in Central Luzon.
Earlier, Education Secretary Jesli Lapus assured the immediate repair on the damaged school buildings to ensure smooth school opening in all public schools nationwide.
He said his office will request allocations from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for the repair of schools affected by Cosme.
DepEd will also tap the P300-million Quick Response Fund (QRF) to fast track the repair and rehabilitation of the damaged school buildings.
Lapus said the repair of school buildings should not take more than three weeks as school opening is set on June 10. (VR/AH/Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Dumaguete. (May 22, 2008 issue)
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