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THE
first typhoon to hit the Philippines in the second half
of the year—Chedeng—which may signal the start of the
typhoon season of up to 23 hurricanes slamming the
country—has, as expected, inundated Metro Manila and
nearby provinces with up to six feet of water, leading
to the suspension of classes and hours-long standstill
on the streets.
One boy
in the summer capital of
Baguio
City
was buried in a landslide, but otherwise, reports were
mostly of only minor injuries, such as to five siblings
in the mountain pilgrimage city of Antipolo when their
house walls collapsed under high winds.
Arlyn,
25; Ameriza, 22; Armida, 21; Ian, 20; and Angelo, 17,
all siblings, were brought to Antipolo Medical Hospital
for treatment of minor injuries.
STRANDED passengers jostle
for their rides on Leveriza Street, near Buendia Avenue,
in Pasay City. Many jeepney drivers did not ply their
routes owing to fl oods that inundated many major roads.
-- ROY
DOMINGO
The most
ravaged by the water, as usual, is Navotas in Metro
Manila, which is at least a foot under the water level
of Manila Bay, as its dikes were no match to the
continuous rains.
Typhoon
Chedeng has already left the country, and the rains it
generated are expected to abate steadily over the next
several days.
However,
tropical depression Dodong, with maximum winds of 55
kilometers per hour, is expected to enter the Philippine area of
responsibility on Thursday, according to Office of Civil
Defense administrator Glenn Rabonza.
Its path
has not been revealed yet to journalists, but sources
said it may make landfall somewhere in the Bicol or the
Eastern Visayas region.
The
National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) reported
that Roniel Renon Ramos died after a landslide buried
him just after midnight at their house in the Slaughter
Compound,
Santo Niño Village,
Baguio City.
In Metro
Manila, the NDCC reported that most streets were
submerged in floodwater ranging from one foot to six
feet.
In
Makati City, two minor landslides occurred at about 12
a.m. on Tuesday in Hagdang Bato, West Rembo, and at
about 6:43 a.m. on Wednesday at a nearby covered
basketball court where two families were evacuated.
The NDCC
said most streets in the Ilocos,
Central Luzon and Calabarzon (Cavite,
Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) regions are under
water.
Rabonza,
also executive director of the NDCC, said they were
still gathering information from local disaster
coordinating councils and local government officials all
over the country to get updates on the condition in
their respective areas, along with estimates of damages.
Classes
in all levels in both private and public schools were
suspended in Metro Manila and other affected areas.
At the
international airport, operations continued in spite of
the heavy downpour yesterday, marred only by slight
delays for some domestic flights, while international
carriers remained unaffected by the foul weather.
In
Navotas, Mayor Tobias Tiangco ordered intensified
cleaning of the city’s canals, creeks and other
waterways even in the midst of the rains to help reduce
the level of the water in his waterlogged city.
Priority
areas were barangays Tanza, Tangos, Daanghari,
Bagumbayan, and North Bay Boulevard South.
More on
a longer-term move is the completion in several more
months of two additional pumping stations that Navotas
hopes would clear it of water much faster.
In the
entire metropolis, heavy traffic was the order of the
day for several days, and Angelito Vergel de Dios,
executive director of the Metropolitan Manila
Development Authority Traffic Operation Center, said
unrepaired potholes and other street defects contributed
to the mess that also resulted in many stranded
passengers, as well as many high-school and elementary
students who did not know of the suspension of classes,
owing to a late announcement by the Department of
Education.
Along
the South Expressway, the portion in Sucat, Parañaque,
was impassable to light vehicles in the early mornings
owing to about knee-high waters.
Low-lying areas in flood-prone
Caloocan,
Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela or Camanava were the
first to sink in floodwaters. The Tullahan River
overflowed, spewing not only floodwater but also
garbage, aggravating the flooding on a portion of
MacArthur Highway.
The
Department of Public Works and Highways also temporarily
stopped the ongoing repair and rehabilitation of the
Tullahan Bridge.
In
Malabon City, floodwaters submerged barangays
surrounding the city’s government center. Local
officials said the waters reached neck-deep in some
areas. (J. Mayuga, R. Mercene, C. Mocon, R. Acosta) |
