Pepeng death toll now at 419, surpasses Ondoy’s

The death toll from typhoon "Pepeng" (Parma) has surpassed that of tropical storm "Ondoy" (Ketsana), according to figures from the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) Friday. In its 6 a.m. report, the NDCC said Pepeng’s death toll was at 419, mostly buried by landslides in Baguio City and the provinces of Benguet and Mt. Province. Ondoy’s death toll has been placed at 341, mostly from floods. NDCC said Pepeng killed at least 333 in Cordillera region - 288 in Benguet alone - and 71 in Ilocos, 10 in Central Luzon, and four in Bicol.
For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV Most of the deaths in Cordillera were due to landslides while the rest in other regions were due to drowning, it added. At least 51 were still missing while 184 were reported injured. Pepeng, which made landfall thrice in northern Luzon starting Oct. 3, affected at least 662,274 families or 3,106,978 people in 4,585villages in 361 towns and 35 cities and 27 provinces. Of these, 15,629 families or 74,868 people are still staying in 168 evacuation centers. Some 4,040 houses were destroyed while 34,843 were damaged. Damage to property was estimated at P10.437 billion, including P3.402 billion in infrastructure and P7.032 billion in agriculture. The NDCC said power has been fully restored in Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte, but power interruption is still experienced in Aringay, Bauang and Caba towns in La Union. Power interruptions are also being experienced in 14 towns in Pangasinan province, it added. On the other hand, telecommunications services in Pasig City may be disrupted due to a damaged underground cable of PLDT. Telecommunication lines of PLDT and Digitel in Cagayan Valley were partially restored. In northern Luzon, Pangasinan officials are verifying reports of an artificial dam at the top of Caraballo Mountain ridge that may cause flooding and mudflow in Caurdenataan and Don Montano villages in Umingan, Pangasinan. "Hundreds of residents in the threatened area had been evacuated by Philippine Army (and) local government units. The remaining residents have been alerted for possible evacuation," the NDCC said. - GMANews.TV