SEVERE Tropical Storm Ulysses has left 124 villages in 14 towns and cities, as well as hundreds of individuals in evacuation centers, according to the recent report of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) in Pampanga.
All 26 barangays in the perennially flooded town of Masantol are currently under floodwater at an average of one to two feet due to heavy rain and floodwater coming from dams and upstream areas. Some 21 barangays in the coastal town of Macabebe are also flooded with an average of two to three feet in some areas.
San Luis town also reported flooding in 11 of its barangays due to the overflow of creeks and accumulation of rain water. The PDRRMO also recorded flooding in three barangays of Santo Tomas and 31 barangays in Candaba town. Candaba villages have been flooded due to accumulation of floodwater coming from northern areas, with flooding as high as three to four feet in some areas.
Barangays Santo Nino, Dela Paz, San Miguel and Santa Monica in San Simon town are currently in one to two feet flood water, as of Saturday afternoon.
In the City of San Fernando, some six barangays are currently in floodwater, with four-feet flooding having been recorded in Barangay San Agustin.
Other towns with flooded barangays include Sasmuan (two), Apalit (five), Minalin (nine), Bacolor (two), Guagua (one), Arayat (two) and Mexico (one).
The majority of towns and cities of Pampanga have experienced more than 15 hours of power interruption due to damage to power lines of service providers and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.
Some 1,054 families or 3,821 individuals were placed in 90 evacuation centers in 17 municipalities and cities of the province during preventive evacuations. Some families are expected to return home starting Sunday as the weather improves.
The Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office reported that some 24,355 families have been affected by the typhoon. The office also reported 1,001 partially damaged houses from the typhoon, with another 129 houses classified as totally damaged. The majority of the totally damaged houses are in Candaba (91), Santa Rita (nine), San Luis (six) and San Simon (six).