Albay under state of calamity, NDRRMC says

Albay was placed under a state of calamity in the wake of Typhoon Chedeng (Songda), the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Friday. In its noon update, the NDRRMC also said the decampment of families preemptively evacuated to safer grounds in Albay and Sorsogon provinces was still continuing. "(The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council also) declared Albay Province under a State of Calamity through (Provincial Council) Resolution No. 38- 2011," it said. A report by GMA News' Lia Mañalac on GMA News TV's "News to Go" said the high number of residents evacuated in the province prompted local authorities there to declare a state of calamity. [View video of Mañalac's report below.]

The NDRRMC said Chedeng had caused at least one death and affected 67,514 families or 328,963 people in 272 villages in 42 towns and six cities in 10 provinces. Of these, 53,840 families or 262,374 people had been evacuated to various centers. Meanwhile, the NDRRMC said the Philippine Coast Guard in Bicol reported that all trips bound for Catanduanes, Masbate and other ports in the region resumed as of 6:30 a.m. Friday. It added roll-on-roll-off vessels plying routes at Matnog (Sorsogon) had resumed operations "as weather condition is already normal." Last Wednesday, Albay Governor Jose Salceda said they aimed to preemptively evacuate 49,893 families to protect them from the threat of Chedeng at the time. — RSJ, GMA News