‘Lack’ of water, food in the Philippines caused by hurricane | Weather News

More than 18,000 troops and paramedics have joined the search and rescue operation in the Philippines, following the deadliest storm in the country this year. initiated “severe damage” in the central and southern regions.

Saturday’s delivery comes as the death toll from Hurricane Rai rose to 18 and people in the affected areas appealed for help.

The storm, known as Odette, was the strongest storm at the time beaten Entering the eastern island of Siargao on Thursday, carrying strong winds of 195 kilometers per hour (120 kilometers per hour).

More than 300,000 people were displaced by the cyclone, which swept across central and southern the country, disrupting communications and demolishing concrete plants.

Mark Timbal, a spokesman for the International Disaster Management Agency, said “there is a” catastrophe “on the island of Siargao and in the city of Surigao on the nearby island of Mindanao.

Negotiations are still underway in Siargao and Surigao, he told AFP reporters.

The Philippine Coast Guard shared footage on television showing the devastating devastation surrounding the city of Surigao, with roofs torn, wooden houses demolished and palm trees torn down.

Aerial photographs showed many rice fields under water.

In Dinagat, a province west of Siargao, Deputy Governor Nilo Demerey told ABS-CBN reporter that the storm had killed at least six people.

As a result, the death toll has risen to 18, with the World Health Organization said seven people were missing and two others injured.

“Odette was very strong,” said Demerey, using a local name for the hurricane.

Residents are “struggling to make their homes better because even our shelter has been demolished. They can’t escape anywhere… everything was destroyed. ”

Jamela Alindogan of Al Jazeera, a report from the Philippine capital, Manila, said things were “difficult” in the affected areas.

“People we spoke to said they lacked water, medicine, shelter and basic necessities such as blankets and bedding. Many hospitals in those areas were destroyed. “Some patients there are also in need of food, medicine and other necessities,” he said.

“But the problem here is that the checkpoints – the airports and ports – have been severely damaged.”

Officials are still working to determine the extent of the damage, including the number of deaths, he said, but efforts have failed due to damage to communication systems.

Survivors are “grateful to be alive”, Alindogan said, “but they are afraid for the coming months because their lives have been cut short.”

“Most of the affected areas, Siargao, Bohol, Leyte, are slowly recovering from the epidemic. These are areas that rely heavily on tourists for their livelihood,” he said. is large, due to the closure and collapse of the economy, and is expected to recover. “

The Philippine Meteorological Agency reports that the storm is declining.

After Palawan Island on Friday, Rai landed in the South China Sea on Saturday and was on his way to Vietnam, he said.

Rai hit the Philippines at the end of the hurricane season – most of the storms last between July and October.

Scientists have long warned that hurricanes are becoming more severe and increasing rapidly as the earth warms up as a result of man-made climate change.

The Philippines – one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change – is affected by 20 hurricanes each year, which damage crops, housing and construction in previously poor areas.