At least 1 dead, 1 injured after ‘Ulysses’ but dozens more expected

November 12, 2020

An aerial shot of Marikina City following the torrential rains of Typhoon Ulysses. (SCREENSHOT: Sen. Bong Go/Facebook)

Disaster authorities in the Philippines have confirmed at least one death and one injury after Typhoon Vamco (Philippine name: Ulysses) but reports believe there are dozens more casualties.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) in its second situation report of Ulysses also said there were four missing persons. All cases were from Camarines Norte, which first experienced the brunt of the typhoon.

In other reports, the Philippine National Police (PNP) recorded 14 people dead while 15 individuals were said to be missing following the onslaught of the typhoon.

Ulysses wreaked havoc in several parts of Luzon, submerging coastal and riverside communities under floodwater as it brought torrential rains.

Among these flooded areas were Marikina City and the towns of Montalban and Rodriguez in Rizal. These areas were also the most flooded during Typhoon Ondoy in 2009, which left 464 dead and 529 injured.

Heavy rains also made the La Mesa Dam hit spilling level. The water level in Marikina River also hit 22 meters, only a meter below the 23-meter-high level in 2009 when Ondoy struck the Philippines.

The NDRRMC also reported areas in Cagayan province, Quezon province, and the Bicol region also experienced up to knee-deep flooding. Landslides were reported in Pamplona and Lasam in Cagayan, damaging schools and eroding riverbanks.

Over 53,752 families were pre-emptively evacuated, but reports online appealed to rescuers to fast-track since some of them were elderly or had health complications.

Search and rescue operations are ongoing.

Charlie Barredo contributed to this report.