‘Paolo’ affects 6,000 in transit through PH
Almost 6,000 people across four regions have been affected by Tropical Cyclone “Paolo,” (international name: Matmo) the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported on Saturday, with affected families numbering 1,833 or 5,979 individuals, across 10 provinces.
A total of 3,368 residents from Regions 1 and 3 were preemptively evacuated before the typhoon intensified, while 4,4317 people remain displaced. Of this number, many are staying in 74 evacuation centers, while others are sheltering outside designated facilities.
Paolo, which developed into a typhoon earlier this week, brought rains and strong winds over parts of northern and Central Luzon. The cyclone has since exited the Philippine landmass after crossing the country’s northern areas.
The NDRRMC continues to monitor affected communities for damage assessment and assistance to displaced families.
Paolo is moving west-northwest toward southern China after exiting the Philippine area of responsibility, the state weather bureau said on Saturday.
In its 11 a.m. advisory, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) lifted all the tropical wind signal advisories. However, they said Paolo’s outer rain bands may still bring storm to gale-force gusts over Batanes, northern Cagayan, including Babuyan Islands, Apayao, Zambales and Bataan.
Pagasa located Paolo’s center at 440 kilometers west of Sinait, Ilocos Sur. It retained its momentum, packing maximum sustained winds of 110 kilometers per hour near the center, gusts of up to 135 kph, and was moving west-northwest at 20 kph.
Paolo may re-intensify into a typhoon while moving over the West Philippine Sea.
Meantime, the European Union (EU) released €800,000, or an estimated P54,380,800, in humanitarian aid to support relief operations for communities struck by recent cyclones and floods in the Philippines.
For relief assistance
In their official statement released on Friday, the EU announced that the funds will be directed toward emergency assistance.
“The funding will help address the most urgent needs of people in the hardest hit areas, including communities that are also affected by conflict,” the EU said.
“This allocation will be used to provide emergency relief in areas such as shelter, health, and water and sanitation,” they added.
This latest contribution builds on the €6.5 million (an estimated P441,800,000) in humanitarian aid and disaster preparedness funding the EU has already provided to the Philippines this year.
That amount includes €500,000 (or almost P34,000,000) earmarked in July following an earlier string of tropical cyclones.
The EU delegation to the Philippines said it is also monitoring the aftermath of the Sept. 30 earthquake in Cebu.
“The EU expresses its condolences to the families of the victims and stands ready to provide additional support pending on-going needs assessment,” they said.
On Friday, Oct. 3, the NDRRMC reported that 457,554 individuals or 128,294 families were affected by the earthquake.
