BY AARON RECUENCO
Severe tropical storm “Pepito” has left more than P121.5 million worth of damage so far in agriculture and infrastructure during its onslaught in Luzon, the Office of Civil Defense said on Thursday.
OCD spokesman Mark Timbal said there was no reported casualty in any areas hit by the weather disturbance but said it affected a total of 5,555 families composed of 25,268 individuals in CALABARZON (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon), Cagayan Valley region, and Central Luzon.
Of the families affected, a total of 3,639 families composed of 16,343 individuals were forced to flee their homes.
Timbal said the damage was breakdown to some P92.5 million in agriculture and P29 million in infrastructure. But the assessment of the damage, he said, is still ongoing.
One of the major destructions left by “Pepito” was the massive flooding in Lopez town of Quezon wherein a major road for the Manila-Bicol route was submerged in high floodwaters.
Timbal said a total of 792 vehicles were stuck in the area as of Wednesday afternoon. Some of the vehicles already decided to turn back. (Aaron Recuenco)
