Thousands of residents in Baras town in the island province of Catanduanes were left homeless after Super Typhoon Uwan (international name: Fung-Wong) tore through the coastal area, destroying homes and livelihoods.
According to the Baras Information and Public Affairs Unit, 150 houses were destroyed, while 1,244 were partially damaged.
‘All 29 barangays are affected, affecting some 13,000 individuals. We urgently need food packs, shelter kits, clean drinking water, and hygiene kits,’ Mayor Paulo Teves told the Inquirer in a phone interview on Tuesday.
He said a total of 2,433 families or 7,569 individuals were evacuated but have since returned to their damaged homes, building temporary shelters as they try to recover from the storm’s destruction.
Aside from damaged houses, crops, particularly abaca plantations, were also battered and were not spared from Uwan’s wrath.’We cannot yet estimate the cost of the damage as some areas are still impassable due to landslides,’ Teves said.
Mary Anne Molina, director of the Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority in the region, said in a separate message on Tuesday that reporting from the field remains challenging due to impassable roads and power outages that have disrupted connectivity.
‘There is heavy damage to abaca in the northern towns of Caramoran, Pandan, Bagamanoc, Panganiban, and Viga, while moderate to heavy damage was reported in Baras, Gigmoto, and Bato,’ Molina said.
She added that abaca plantations in Iriga City and Buhi town also bore the brunt of Uwan’s wrath