Just after the Cosme Espino had a meeting with the municipal and city disaster coordinating councils all over the province to get a situational update from their respective areas of responsibility. According to the Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council (PDCC) there is an estimated loss of P1,381,555,000 in agriculture and aquaculture. It also reported that 4,967 houses were damaged while 9,551 were partially damaged.
Areas like Lingayen, Bugallon, Laoac, Manaoag, San Manuel, Binalonan, Tayug and Dagupan City have been reported badly damaged. Paterno Orduòa, PDCC Executive Officer, informed that nearly P794,854,000 worth of fruit bearing trees were destroyed by Cosme’s strong winds; damage to crops (rice and corn) was pegged at P193,104,140; and P380,390,000 in fishery (fishpond and fish pen).
According to Orduoa, the number of fatalities in the province has increased to 23. Orduoa told that most of the victims were hit with falling debris or tree branches. Four were drowned. Accordingly, the Provincial Board (PB) will hold a special session this week where representatives from three electric cooperatives in the province, National Transmission Corporation (Transco) and other utility companies are invited.
It is said that the water level at San Roque Dam in San Manuel as of 11 a.m. Tuesday was at 251.93 meters above sea level. It was 28.07 meters below the 280 meters spilling level mark. Even the Dagupan City was also declared under state of calamity. The destruction was so massive that electricity and telephone lines were uprooted. But the most affected industry was fisheries.
