By The SUN
 |
| Paeng caused flooding in 59 provinces across the Philippines |
Tropical Storm Paeng – or Naegi to the rest of the world – is now in the South China Sea, and is forecast to bring some rain and cooler days to Hong Kong starting on Tuesday, but extreme weather conditions are not likely.
But in the Philippines, the storm left a trail of death, destruction and power outages over the weekend.
At least
80 people were reported dead, mostly due to flooding, and about 40 others
injured.
 |
| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
About
half, or 40, of those who died were residents of the Bangsamoro Autonomous
Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) with 40, followed by Region 6 or Western
Visayas with 18, Calabarzon with 12, Region 9 or the Zamboanga Peninsula with
four, Region 12 or Soccsksargen with three, Region 8 or Eastern Visayas with
two, and Region 5 or Bicol with one.
Paeng
was unusually persistent, having made landfall on Philippine soil five times on
Saturday: in Virac, Catanduanes at
1:10am; Caramoan, Camarines Sur at 1:40am; Buenavista, Quezon at 6am; Santa
Cruz, Marinduque at 8:40am; and Sariaya, Quezon at 1:40pm.
 |
| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
After
turning around to hit Quezon a second time, Paeng moved on to Laguna, Cavite,
Metro Manila-Rizal, Bulacan, Pampanga and then Zambales, before exiting to the
West Philippine Sea.
But
even before making a landfall, Paeng already caused severe flooding and
landslides in Mindanao and parts of the Visayas. It also rendered 150 roads and
60 bridges impassable in as far away as the Cagayan Valley.
Damage
from the storm was extensive, largely because it brought with it heavy and constant
rain that led to massive flooding across
59 provinces throughout the country.
 |
| More than 1.1 million people had to leave their homes when Paeng swept through the Philippines |
According
to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), up to
1,174,666 people—or
339,051 families—were affected by the storm. About 485,000 people have been
displaced, and are mostly staying in more than 3,000 evacuation centers
nationwide.
At
least 1,537 houses were damaged, with 332 of these totally wrecked, the NDRRMC
said.
 |
| MAY CHANCE KA PANG MANALO! |
Just
before leaving the country’s territory on Sunday afternoon, Paeng swept through
Metro Manila, causing heavy flooding in places like Cavite and Paranaque. At
least 45 areas had either their telephone connection or electricity supply cut
for hours.
The
government, through the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and
local units, has so far provided Php5 million worth of assistance to affected
residents, mostly in the form of good packs.
A
total of 285 flights, both international and domestic, were canceled.
 |
| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
Even
before Paeng had left another tropical depression was brewing just outside the
country’s territorial waters.
The tropical depression was located 1,385
kilometers east of northeastern Mindanao before dawn on Sunday, moving west
northwest at 10 km/h after being almost stationary.
It still has maximum sustained winds of 45
km/h and gustiness of up to 55 km/h.
 |
| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
PAGASA said the tropical depression may
enter PAR on Monday morning, and would be given the local name Queenie. But it
will likely remain a tropical depression until Tuesday, when it is forecast to
start weakening.
