Key points:
- More than 21,000 food and non-food relief packs are being sent by PAGCOR to northern towns and provinces affected by the typhoon
- Typhoon Ofel reached highest winds of 150mph
- PAGCOR is working alongside local government units (LGUs) to distribute the aid to communities
Typhoon Usagi, known in the Philippines as Super Typhoon Ofel, hit the Northern Luzon area of the Philippines last week, along with Taiwan.
The tropical storm formed on 9 November and dissipated on 16 November, reaching wind speeds of 150 mph.
Around 10,000 people were evacuated before the typhoon hit and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported that 852,000 people were affected while 112,000 have been displaced.
In response to this, PAGCOR has prepared over 21,000 relief packs to be sent to residents in Apayao, Cagayan, Isabela, Pagudpud and Ilocos Norte.
A further 11,000 packs are due for delivery to severely affected municipalities in Cagayan including Aparri, Baggao, Ballesteros, Buguey, Calayan, Sanchez Mira, and Santa Teresita.
Good to know: Typhoon Ofel has reportedly caused PHP469.8m (US$9.54m) in damages to infrastructure in the Philippines and around PHP1m in agricultural damages in Luzon. This places the total damage to agriculture at PHP1.4bn from typhoons in the last few weeks.
Alejandro Tengco, PAGCOR Chairman and CEO, said: “We have been in close coordination with the Office of Civil Defense to facilitate the distribution of these relief aids to severely affected communities. We understand the need of these local communities to receive all the help they can get and enable them to rise above their dire situation.”
Tengco continued: “We have been actively working with affected LGUs to determine the number of displaced families that needed help and to ensure that no community is left behind.”
Recently, PAGCOR released its Q3 reports which revealed PHP94.61bn in GGR.
