(UPDATE) RESCUERS in the Philippines dived into a lake and scoured isolated villages on Sunday to locate dozens of missing people as the death toll from Severe Tropical Storm Kristine (International name "Trami") hit 100.
Kristine, which rammed into 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 to flee their homes, and at least 36 remain missing.
Police in the hardest-hit Bicol Region recorded 38 deaths, most due to drowning.
Bicol regional police director Andre Dizon told Agence France-Presse said "many residents" in Camarines Sur were still trapped on roofs and the 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 since rescuers can now reach previously isolated places," said Edgar Posadas of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD).
The police, coast guard and a Marines diving team were searching on Sunday for a family of seven at Taal Lake in Batangas.
"The waters from the mountains hit their home in Balete town, causing it to be swept away with them possibly inside," Malinao said.
More than 20 bodies were pulled from heaps of mud, boulders and fallen trees, while police said at least another 20 people in the province are still missing.
"We will continue searching until all bodies are retrieved," Malinao said.
The national disaster agency said Sunday that about 560,000 people had been displaced by floods, which submerged hundreds of villages in swaths of the northern Philippines.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., over the weekend, assured that government systems are in place to help those affected by Kristine, particularly in the Bicol Region.
The President turned over P50 million to Albay acting governor Glenda Ong-Bongao and P30 million to Naga City Mayor Nelson Legacion.
Another P50 million was given to the Camarines Sur provincial government to supplement relief efforts.
Four trucks of rice from the National Food Authority and Food Terminal Inc. arrived in Naga Sunday morning for distribution to storm-stricken families.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said over 4.2 million people in Bicol were affected by the storm, with 19 local government units declaring a state of calamity.
Overall, 5,784,298 individuals in 8,895 villages were affected by the storm, the NDRRMC said.
It said 382,154 persons were staying at 7,484 evacuation centers.
Agricultural damage climbed to over P3 billion, the Department of Agriculture (DA) reported on Sunday.
As of October 27, the storm affected 74,554 farmers and fisherfolk in Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, the Cordilleras, Bicol, Mimaropa, Eastern Visayas and Western Visayas.
The DA estimated that 72,329 hectares (ha) of areas planted for rice, corn and high-value crops were damaged, resulting in losses equivalent to 160,107 metric tons (MT).
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the losses due to La Niña and Kristine would be considerable since the harvest season was ongoing.
Loan programs under the Agricultural Credit Policy Council, the Quick 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 offered financial assistance to businesses and individuals affected by Kristine through its Cares Plus (Community Assistance and REintegration Support Plus) Lending Program.
Appeal for help
House Assistant Minority Leader Gabriel Bordado Jr. on Sunday appealed for help for 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 flooding our region has faced since 1993. Communities across Camarines Sur are struggling to recover, with so many areas still submerged and out of reach due to a lack of amphibious vehicles," he said.
He appreciated the efforts of former vice president Leni Robredo and the Angat Buhay Movement in delivering aid to victims, "but the scale of devastation is overwhelming, and countless families still need help."
Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) said it had restored power to most of its storm-hit customers.
Meralco said that as of 7 a.m. Sunday, customers affected by service interruptions were down to around 6,000, less than 1 percent of its total customer count, and a big improvement from 360,489 affected customers last Friday.
The majority of the remaining affected areas are in Cavite and Laguna, where strong winds toppled trees and electric poles.
Philippine National Police chief Rommel Francisco Marbil on Sunday lauded the police officers who helped save flood victims.
"From wading through dangerous floodwaters to evacuate children to safety to rescuing entire families trapped in their homes, their selflessness and bravery are beyond measure," Marbil said.
Over 4,000 officers were deployed to the hardest-hit areas on rescue missions.
The PNP coordinated with local authorities in Bacoor, Cavite, where teams rescued residents trapped by rising floodwaters.
In Bicol, Army and Philippine Air Force troopers rescued residents trapped by floods.
Marbil said that in Batangas, where landslides buried homes, police personnel helped save affected families despite 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), announced on Sunday a moratorium on housing amortization to 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 the storm victims.
Acuzar directed the Home Development Mutual Fund or Pag-IBIG Fund, Social Housing Finance Corp. and the National Home Mortgage Finance Corp. to impose a moratorium to provide relief to the affected individuals who have outstanding amortization with KSAs.
He said in a statement to The Manila Times that the DHSUD is working closely with typhoon-affected LGUs for the speedy processing of assistance for the families who may qualify through its Integrated Disaster Shelter Assistance Program.
The DHSUD is providing P30,000 unconditional cash assistance to those whose houses were destroyed and P10,000 for those whose houses were partially damaged.
NHA General Manager Joeben Tai said the moratorium would be for one month for the housing amortization and lease payments.
The moratorium will automatically apply to beneficiaries from Nov. 1 to 30, 2024. Payment of amortization and lease shall resume on Dec. 1, 2024.
Singapore and Malaysia sent a C-130 cargo plane and a helicopter to assist in relief and rescue operations in areas in Bicol devastated by Kristine.
Philippine Air Force (PAF) Public Affairs Chief Ma Consuelo Castillo said the C-130 from the Singapore Air Force and a Eurocopter EC725 transport helicopter from the Royal Malaysian Air Force arrived at the Col. Jesus Villamor Air Base Saturday.
"These aircraft are set to play a crucial role in bolstering the Philippine Air Force's ongoing Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response (HADR) operations in areas affected by Severe Tropical Storm Kristine," Castillo said.
Among those on hand to welcome the aircraft were Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., Malaysian Ambassador Dato Abd Malik Castelino, Singapore Ambassador Constance See, and PAF commander Lt. Gen Stephen Parreño.
Several Black Hawk helicopters, including a presidential chopper, were deployed in the flood-hit provinces of Albay and Camarines Sur to deliver food items 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 Villamor Air Base to the Bicol International Airport in Daraga, Albay.
On Saturday, two Urban Search and Rescue Teams (USAR) from the Philippine Army 525th Combat Engineer Battalion distributed food items to families in Bula, Camarines Sur.
Donation
Comedian and television host Willie Revillame and the Manila Teachers Partylist donated P3 million for Kristine victims in Bicol.
Revillame and a representative from the partylist group handed the amount over the weekend to the Angat Buhay Foundation chaired by former vice president Leni Robredo.
"My mother is from Bicol, so the Bicolanos are close to my heart," he said in a statement.
Robredo thanked Revillame and the partylist for the donation.
Revillame is running for senator. Based on the latest pre-poll survey conducted by Pulso ng Pilipino on October 9 to 16, 2024, Revillame is in a statistical tie with former Ilocos Suir Gov. Luis "Chavit" Singson at 22 percent or 17th-18th places.
WITH ED PAOLO SALTING, ARLIE O. CALALO, FRANCISCO TUYAY, WILLIAM B. DEPASUPIL, JANINE ALEXIS MIGUEL AND AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE