CNN —
Already knee-deep in water, 22-year-old Kiawen Garan’s first thought was how to help her neighbors, whose homes were flooded and whose homes were being hit by heavy rain.
Tropical Storm Trami, locally known as “Kristin”, battered the northeastern Philippines last week, inundating entire towns with severe flooding and causing deadly landslides. It was the deadliest and most destructive storm to hit the archipelago so far this year.
Although the Philippines is hit by multiple typhoons each year, Trami was not a particularly strong storm when it made landfall, at least in terms of wind speed. But it was heavy downpours that caused the destruction.
The country’s disaster relief authorities are rushing to provide relief to remote communities, especially those in the worst-hit Bicol region, ahead of another powerful storm that could soon hit the region. Nearly 130 people were reported dead and at least 30 were reported missing. Also.
“Of course I was scared, but luckily my family’s house is on higher ground,” Garlan, a resident of Sorsogon province, told CNN.
Severe flooding covered the roofs of several houses in Bran district, Sorsogon province, more than 575 kilometers southeast of the capital Manila.
“Heavy rain and strong winds came out of nowhere,” Garlan said. “And our town doesn’t usually flood.”
As soon as the rain began to ease, Garland and about 15 other volunteers worked with local relief authorities to clear roads and arrange for aid deliveries.
“We’re worried that we won’t be able to reach people in time. There are children who are already suffering from colds and coughs, and some who may have leptospirosis (a bacterial disease). Maybe,” he said.
Bran, a town of about 100,000 people, was one of the first municipalities to declare a state of emergency on Wednesday in anticipation of the storm. Floods soon followed, but fortunately no deaths were reported.
Across Sorsogon province, photos shared by emergency response teams showed many roads covered in thick mud, making some areas impassable to vehicles.
The death toll across the country continues to rise as rescue efforts are hampered by closed roads, choppy seas and strong winds, making it dangerous to reach rural areas by land, sea and air.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos has ordered Philippine military assets, including a presidential helicopter, to assist in rescue and rescue operations, according to a statement on Friday.
“Through the air, land and sea, we will continue to support. Together we will rise again,” Marcos said.
Destroyed by landslide
Talisay, Batangas province, about 70 kilometers (43 miles) south of Manila, was one of the towns hardest hit by Trami destruction.
Residents of this rural lakeside town are no strangers to disaster. The town is located north of Taal Volcano, one of the country’s most active volcanoes, and volcanic ash regularly spews into the air, prompting people to take precautions to evacuate.
However, no one seemed to be prepared for the unusually heavy rains brought by Trami.
Entire families were trapped in a deluge of landslides that destroyed around 3,000 homes across the state.
Governor Hermirande Mandanas appealed to the families of the dead, fearing that another potentially powerful storm, Typhoon Kong Ray, also known locally as Leon, could soon hit the region again. , recommended that the deceased be buried immediately.
Local authorities in Talisay province said funerals for 20 people, including 12 children, who died in the landslide were held Saturday at a covered basketball court in the small town.
State-run PTV reported that Reynaldo Dejucos lost his entire family, the youngest of whom was 2 years old, when his home in the town was swept up in a landslide.
“I’m trying to stay strong,” DeJucos told PTV. “I’ll never forget this…I don’t know how long it will take to heal.”
“When I got there, everything was gone. There were no houses, just rocks, mud and pieces of metal sheets everywhere. There wasn’t a single house left.”
The two-year-old girl was rescued, but all four members of her immediate family were killed, leaving her an orphan, PTV reported.
Heinrich Sandrino, from nearby Albay province, said authorities had managed to evacuate people living in vulnerable areas of the town but were still being caught off guard by the unusual amount of rain.
Sandrino said the flooding had brought in mud and mud, covering roads and burying half of the houses and vehicles, making it nearly impossible for rescue teams to be dispatched.
On Saturday, Marcos visited Camarines Sur province, the largest province in Bicol, to inspect the damage and meet with some of the disaster victims who have taken refuge in evacuation centers.
“The main problem here is that many areas are still flooded,” he told government officials at a briefing. “The amount of water is out of control.”
“This is climate change. We need to come up with new solutions because this is something completely new,” Marcos added.
Mr. Marcos stressed the need to reconsider long-term development projects, especially the Bicol River Basin Project, to deal with severe flooding during weather disasters.
On Monday, Trami continued moving west from the Philippines across the South China Sea and struck central Vietnam, killing at least two people in the central province of Thua Thien Hue, state media reported.
The region is also bracing for Typhoon Con Rey, which reached typhoon strength as it approaches Taiwan this week, bringing heavy rain and strong winds to the northern Philippine island of Luzon in the coming days.
Experts have warned that Southeast Asia is one of the world’s most vulnerable regions to climate change, making it more susceptible to extreme weather events such as heat waves, storm surges and floods.
The Philippines is a country highly susceptible to natural disasters, and the number of more severe storms and typhoons has increased in recent years.
So far this year, Typhoon Gaemi has caused devastating flooding in the capital Manila and parts of Luzon. Last month, the country was also hit by Typhoon Yagi, the region’s most powerful storm of the year, which hit southern China and Southeast Asia, killing dozens of people.
