15K persons return home as weather turns fine in Bicol

LEGAZPI CITY — At least 4,022 families or 15,205 persons, who sought shelter in various government evacuation centers, were allowed to return home on Sunday as the weather normalizes in Bicol, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) here said on Monday.

In a report to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), OCD Regional Director Claudio Yucot said the decampment began on Sunday after consultation with the six PDRRMCs.

Yucot said Typhoon Ompong has dumped moderate rainfall in the six Bicol provinces, prompting disaster authorities to carry out preemptive evacuation to villagers vulnerable to floods, lahar and mudflows and landslide.

The OCD report said preemptive evacuation was reported in Catanduanes 1,140 families or 4,861 persons — Albay, 2,126 families or 7,275 persons; Sorsogon, 83 families or 423 persons; Masbate, 247 families or 936 persons; Camarines Sur, 200 families or 853 persons and Camarines Norte, 226 families or 857 persons.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) allowed some 1,370 passengers stranded in major ports in Bicol to sail on Saturday after storm signals in the region were lifted.

Rainfall spawned by Typhoon Ompong has caused various river channels to swell and overflow it also triggered power outages in the Camarines provinces, the OCD report said. (Mar Serrano/PNA)

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