‘Juaning” leaves P1.022B worth of damages in Albay
…relief, rehab and recovery underway

by Marlon A. Loterte

LEGAZPI CITY, July 29 (PIA) -- More than P1 billion worth of damages were recorded in Albay due to tropical storm ‘Juaning’ on Tuesday that brought heavy rains triggering floods in a massive scale, mudflows and landslides in all localities in the province.

Albay Governor Joey Salceda, chair of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC), said today that ‘Juaning’ left a total of P1,021,927,899.66 worth of destruction in agricultural crops, livestock and infrastructure in all the three cities and 15 municipalities of the province.

Salceda bared that an estimated P951,456,000 worth of public infrastructures, including roads, bridges, dikes, and irrigation canals were destroyed by raging flood waters, mudflows, and landslides.

Roads heavily damaged were in Albay’s first engineering district, including Polangui, Guinobatan, and Ligao City, and third’s Malilipot, Malinao and portion of Tabaco City.

Damages to agriculture and livestock were pegged at P70.4 million in production losses in 13,339 hectares of rice, corn and vegetables crops with 7,795 farmers affected across the province.

The tropical storm, according to records of Albay PDRRMC left the province with nine people dead, one still missing and affected some 107,934 families or 557,448 persons. Some 56,955 families or 295,179 people are now housed in various evacuation centers across the province.

Meanwhile, Salceda has also declared the province an “open city”, with Albay now under the state of calamity, for prospective donors to augment the emergency relief assistance of the provincial government to thousands of affected families displaced by the recent calamity.

With “open city” declaration, donors can go directly to areas the identified and chose to provide assistance in any form even without coordinating with the local governments.

“This is to fast track relief assistance efforts, especially to those who needed them most, the like of foods, medicine, personal hygiene kit, blankets, among others complementing the already on-going relief operations of the provincial government’s social welfare and humanitarian service offices,” Salceda said. (MAL, PIA V)

Prices of commodities in Catanduanes remain stable in the wake of calamity

VIRAC, Catanduanes, July 29 (PIA)- Supply and prices of rice, instant noodles and canned sardines are adequate and stable based on monitoring conducted at the warehouses of three distributors and major grocery stores here.

There are no movements in prices in basic commodities viz-a-viz the monitoring conducted before Tropical Storm "Juaning" hit the province.

There were no noted shortage of supplies and attempts to manipulate prices with the expected restoration of transportation.

The economy has not been adversely affected and is expected to function normally. (MAL/EAB, PIA Catanduanes)

P16.7 M damages to agriculture brought by typhoon Juaning in Camarines Norte

by Rosalita Base-Manlangit

DAET, Camarines Norte, July 29 (PIA) – Some P16.7 million worth of damages to agriculture in this province brought by typhoon Juaning based on the initial reports of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPAg) of the provincial government.

In a report submitted to the office of Governor Edgardo Tallado a total of 2,674.68 hectares of palay and high value crops were ruined by typhoon juaning amounting to P16.5 million while 21.75 hectares were the fishery damages worth more than P200 thousand.

Of the 2,674.68 hectares, 2,406.88 were damages to palay amounting to almost P6.5 million in the town of Basud, Daet, Jose Panganiban, Paracale, San Vicente, Sta. Elena, Talisay and Vinzons wherein 2,348 farmers are affected.

On the high value crops/vegetables, 267.8 hectares were affected amounting to more P10 million.

On the fishery damages in the towns of Vinzons and Basud with P200 thousand damages including 10 units of pencage.

Acting Provincial Agriculturist, Francia Pajares said that of the 2,674.68 hectares of palay and high value crops 2,479.25 have a chance of recovery.

The OPAg is continuously conducting monitoring in the other areas that were also affected by the said typhoon.

The said initial reports was also submitted to the Department of Agriculture (DA) in order to include in the rehabilitation program of the agency.

It will be recalled that the province has declared partial state of calamity due to said typhoon last Wednesday (July 20) and approved P1.7 million from the P8 million allocated calamity fund chaired by Vice Governor Jonah Pimentel.

The province has recorded 6 deaths, 4 injured and 4,917 families (24,196 persons) affected by typhoon juaning. (MAL/RBM, PIA Camarines Norte)

DPWH Spearheads Clearing Operation

by Lizel S. Macatangay

BARAS, Canaman, Camarines Sur, July 29 (PIA)--- The roads are now cleared with fallen trees, broken electric and telephone lines and of any debris that would remind the wrath that typhoon Juaning has left the province of Camarines Sur. This is through the concerted efforts made by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) , Camarines Sur V, District Engineering Office under District Engineer Willard Atutubo.

Even on the height of the said typhoon, Atutubo has already directed his men, particularly the First Engineering District’s maintenance crew to stay vigilant and stand by for any untoward accident that might need the crew’s assistance. He has positioned his men in every strategic location along the National Highway for them to immediately respond to any cry for help.

Part of the district’s jurisdiction covers the stretch of the Maharlika highway encompassing the Milaor-Naga Boundary up to the Sipocot-Libmanan periphery which are both an in demand route for travelers. Atutubo has also allotted maintenance crew at the Pasacao-Danao and the Pili-Minalabac roads where motorists are mostly bound towards the Albay area. These are flood-prone areas where motorists and their vehicles might get stucked during the typhoon.

He also assured the public that all proper procedures are carried out to guarantee a safe road for road runners. Atutubo has also reactivated the District’s Disaster team to specifically focus on any inconvenient occurrences that might affect the motorists.

The prompt and quick action of works that the DPWH has implemented bears a positive fruit, with no accident reported along the main thoroughfares of their area of jurisdiction while typhoon Juaning was pounding the province with his intermittent rain and heavy rainfall.

Atutubo said that this is one of their commitments pursuant to President Benigno Aquino’s order under the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management, and that is to ensure the protection and welfare of the people, particularly during disasters or emergencies. (LSM, PIA Camarines Sur)

Provincial Inter-Agency Anti Child Labor committee reports accomplishments

by Irma A. Guhit

SORSOGON CITY, JULY 29 (PIA) -- In a special meeting held here today at Mango Grill, the Sorsogon Provincial Inter-Agency Anti Child Labor Committee (SPIAACLC) and Sagip Batang Mangagawa Quick Action Team reported on the accomplishments and activities conducted for the first two quarters of this year.

The Department of Labor and Employment through its provincial field officer, Imelda Romanillos convened the members for the reporting and assessment of activities and interventions provided by member agencies to see where the SPIAACLC is now in terms of the resolution of concerns and issues regarding anti- child labor practices observed and reported to the committee.

The concerns that were ventilated were the identification of the anti-labor practices observed in some areas or local government units where the interventions of the SPIAACLC like the children divers in Matnog, some children employed as domestic helpers and some children who are also being exploited by parents in asking for alms in the streets.

According to Romanillos the concerns raised by some member- agencies in the identification of where these children are used as child laborers were discussed and the interventions to be provided were also taken up during the first quarter meeting.

The first quarter meeting of the SPIAACIC according to Romanillos was attended by 15 members member agencies comprising of the Deartment of Education Sorsogon City, the Provincial Planning and Development Office, National Council for the Welfare of Children, Public Employment Service Office, LGU Pilar, Department of Justice, Green Valley Development Inc., Philippine Ports Authority -Bulan, Sorsogon Provincial Management Office, Philippine Information Agency, Philippine national Police, National Statistics Office and the Department of Labor and Employment held here at the City of Sorsogon.

Here the objective and activities were planned up to December of this year and how this plan was to be implemented.

The second quarterly meeting was held in Matnog. It gave the newly organized Matnog Inter Agency Anti-Child Labor Committee (MIAACLC) an orientation on the guidelines provided and stipulated in the Philippine Program Against Child Labor (PPACL).

Meanwhile according to Romanillos, because of the prevalence of child labor in the municipality of Pilar specially in the port, way back 2005 the local government through its Sanggunian Bayan has enacted a municipal ordinance on the regulation of employment of children which is the Municipal Ordinance No 007, series of 2005 and the creation of the Pilar Sagip Batang Mangagawa Quick Action Team created through the Executive Order No.05, series of 2011 which also took effect June 14, 20ll.

During the discussion on the PPACL frameworK, this ordinance was taken up so as to provide the Pilar Inter Agency Anti-Child Labor Committee a more thorough complementation in terms of enforcement and was shared to the member agencies for replication in other municipalities.

An advocacy on PPACL with the members of the barangays was also conducted last June 24 at barangay Binanuahan, Pilar, Sorsogon with the same topics discussed.

In the evaluation meeting, Romanillos solicited the member agencies inputs as to the other activities scheduled this August. (PIA-SORSOGON)

In the local government of Pilar the same local counter part of the SPIAACLC was organized and they were also provided orientation on the basic topics like the PPACL Framework, RA 9232, RA 9208 and this was presented through the assistance of the Visayan Forum Foundation Inc. headed by Evely Ubaldo. (IAG, PIA Sorsogon)