(UPDATE) RESCUERS in the Philippines dove into a lake and searched isolated villages to locate dozens of missing people on Sunday, as the death toll from severe tropical storm Kristine (international name ‘Trami’) reached 100.

Kristine, which entered the Philippines on October 24, was among the deadliest storms to hit the country this year.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said the storm forced more than half a million people from their homes and at least 36 remain missing.

Police in the worst-hit Bicol Region recorded 38 deaths, most of them due to drowning.

Bicol regional police director Andre Dizon told Agence France-Presse that “many residents” in Camarines Sur are still trapped on the roofs and upper floors of their homes.

The death toll in Batangas has risen to 55, provincial police chief Jacinto Malinao told AFP.

“A higher death toll is possible in the coming days as rescuers can now reach previously isolated places,” said Edgar Posadas of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD).

Police, coast guard and a navy diving team were searching for a family of seven on Taal Lake in Batangas on Sunday.

“The waters from the mountains hit his house in Balete town, causing it to be swept away possibly inside,” Malinao said.

More than 20 bodies were pulled from piles of mud, boulders and fallen trees, while police said at least another 20 people in the province were still missing.

Rescuers and volunteers carry a body bag containing a dead villager found in a flooded area of ​​a village in Tuguegarao, Cagayan province on October 26, 2024. PHOTO JOHN DIMAIN / AFP

“We will continue the search until all the bodies are recovered,” Malinao said.

The national disaster agency said on Sunday that some 560,000 people had been displaced by the floods, which submerged hundreds of villages in areas of the northern Philippines.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. over the weekend assured that government systems are in place to help those affected by Kristine, especially in the Bicol region.

The President handed over P50 million to Acting Albay Governor Glenda Ong-Bongao and P30 million to Naga City Mayor Nelson Legacion.

Another 50 million lei was given to the provincial government of Camarines Sur to supplement relief efforts.

Four rice trucks from the National Food Authority and Food Terminal Inc. arrived in Naga on Sunday morning to be distributed to families affected by the storm.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said more than 4.2 million people in Bicol were affected by the storm, with 19 local government units declaring a state of calamity.

A total of 5,784,298 people in 8,895 villages were affected by the storm, the NDRRMC said.

It said 382,154 people were housed in 7,484 evacuation centers.

Agricultural damage has risen to more than £3bn, the Department of Agriculture (DA) reported on Sunday.

On October 27, the storm affected 74,554 farmers and fishermen in Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Cordilleras, Bicol, Mimaropa, Eastern Visayas and Western Visayas.

AD estimated that 72,329 hectares (ha) of areas planted to rice, maize and high-value crops were damaged, resulting in losses equivalent to 160,107 metric tons (MT).

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said losses due to La Niña and Kristine will be considerable as the harvest season is underway.

Loan programs under the Agricultural Credit Policy Board, the Rapid Response Fund and funds from the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. are available to affected farmers, the DA said.

The Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank) also provided financial assistance to businesses and individuals affected by Kristine through its Cares Plus (Community Assistance and REintegration Support Plus) loan program.

Call for help

Assistant Minority Leader Gabriel Bordado Jr. on Sunday appealed for help for the storm victims in Bicol.

Bordado also said rescuers were needed in areas that were still flooded.

“Our people are in desperate need of assistance,” Bordado said in a statement.

“This is the worst flood our region has faced since 1993. Communities in Camarines Sur are struggling to recover with so many areas still submerged and inaccessible due to the lack of amphibious vehicles,” he said.

He praised the efforts of former Vice President Leni Robredo and the Angat Buhay Movement to provide aid to the victims, “but the scale of the devastation is overwhelming and countless families still need help.”

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) said it has restored power to most of its customers affected by the storm.

Meralco said that as of 7 a.m. Sunday, customers affected by service interruptions were down to about 6,000, less than 1 percent of the total number of customers and a significant improvement from the 360,489 customers affected last Friday.

Most of the remaining affected areas are in Cavite and Laguna, where strong winds toppled trees and power poles.

Philippine National Police chief Rommel Francisco Marbil on Sunday praised police officers who helped rescue flood victims.

“From wading through dangerous flood waters to evacuate children to safety to rescuing entire families trapped in their homes, their selflessness and courage is beyond measure,” Marbil said.

More than 4,000 officers have been deployed to the worst-hit areas in rescue missions.

The PNP coordinated with local authorities in Bacoor, Cavite, where teams rescued residents stranded by rising waters.

In Bicol, Philippine Army and Air Force soldiers rescued residents trapped by floods.

Marbil said that in Batangas, where landslides buried houses, police personnel helped rescue affected families despite the difficult terrain and relentless rain.

The Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) and its key shelter agencies (KSAs), including the National Housing Authority (NHA), on Sunday announced a moratorium on housing depreciation for their members affected by Kristine.

DHSUD Secretary Jose Rizalino Acuzar said the move was in line with the President’s directive to extend assistance to storm victims.

The Accused directed the Mutual Fund for Home Development or Pag-IBIG Fund, the Social Housing Finance Corps and the National Mortgage Finance Corps for These to impose a moratorium on providing relief to affected individuals who have amortization arrears with KSA.

He said in a statement to The Manila Times that the DHSUD is working closely with the typhoon-affected LGUs for the quick processing of assistance for families who may qualify through its Integrated Disaster Assistance Program.

DHSUD is providing unconditional cash assistance of 30,000 lei to those whose houses were destroyed and 10,000 lei to those whose houses were partially damaged.

NHA Director General Joeben Tai said the moratorium would be for one month on housing depreciation and rental payments.

The moratorium will automatically apply to beneficiaries between November 1 and 30, 2024. Payment of amortization and rent will resume on December 1, 2024.

Singapore and Malaysia have sent a C-130 cargo plane and a helicopter to assist in rescue and relief operations in Bicol areas devastated by Kristine.

Philippine Air Force (PAF) Public Affairs Chief Ma Consuelo Castillo said C-130s from the Singapore Air Force and a Eurocopter EC725 transport helicopter from the Royal Malaysian Air Force arrived at the Col. Jesus Air Force Base on Saturday Villamor.

“These aircraft are set to play a crucial role in strengthening the ongoing humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR) operations of the Philippine Air Force in areas affected by severe tropical storm Kristine,” Castillo said.

Among those who greeted the plane were Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., Malaysian Ambassador Dato Abd Malik Castelino, Singapore Ambassador Constance See and PAF Commander General Stephen Parreño.

Several Black Hawk helicopters, including a presidential helicopter, were deployed to the flood-hit provinces of Albay and Camarines Sur to deliver food to residents.

The PAF has mobilized three C-130 cargo planes to support rescue and relief operations in Bicol.

One of the C-130s transported 14 rubber and fiberglass boats equipped with outboard motors from the Villamor Air Base to the Bicol International Airport in Daraga, Albay.

On Saturday, two Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams from the 525th Combat Engineer Battalion of the Philippine Army distributed food to families in Bula, Camarines Sur.

Donation

Comedian and television host Willie Revillame and Manila Teachers Partylist donated P3 million for Kristine victims in Bicol.

Revillame and a representative of the party group handed over the amount over the weekend to the Angat Buhay Foundation led by former Vice President Leni Robredo.

“My mother is from Bicol, so Bicolanos are close to my heart,” he said in a statement.

Robredo thanked Revillame and the party for the donation.

Revillame is running for senator. Based on the latest pre-poll poll conducted by Pulso ng Pilipino from October 9-16, 2024, Revillame is tied with former Ilocos Suir governor Luis “Chavit” Singson at 22% or 17th-18th.

WITH ED PAOLO SALTING, ARLIE O. CALALO, FRANCISCO TUYAY, WILLIAM B. DEPASUPIL, JANINE ALEXIS MIGUEL AND AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE