By Alec Go
The number of reported deaths following the onslaught of Typhoon Odette last week has reached 326, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said in its latest report.
As of Dec. 24, there are 58 reported missing and 661 injured individuals. Only 14 of the reported deaths, two injured, and four missing have been confirmed. The rest have yet to be validated.
 The estimated number of affected persons has been raised to 3,380,167 or 870,334 families. At least 629,434 were displaced, including 277,050 outside evacuation centers and 352,384 in evacuation centers.
The estimated damages to agriculture and infrastructure have ballooned to ₱2,030,803,044.17 and ₱ 3,999,252,642.04 respectively. The NDRRMC said 161 infrastructures such as roads and government facilities were damaged, while 348,642 houses were partially and totally destroyed.
To date, 343 towns in Mimaropa, Region 6, Region 8, and Caraga have declared a state of calamity. President Rodrigo Duterte declared on Dec. 12 a state of calamity in areas hit by Typhoon Odette covering Regions 4-B, 6, 7, 8, 10, and 13.
This is in a bid to “hasten the rescue and relief and rehabilitation efforts of the government and the private sector,” while the government continues to look further for relief and recovery funding.
Duterte earlier mentioned allotting P10 billion worth of assistance to affected sectors. The budget will come from the available calamity fund, the President’s contingent fund, and the national budget for 2022.
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on Dec. 24 afternoon said the first P1 billion has been released. – jlo
