Natural Disasters: Philippines Caught Between Two Typhoons

Video by: rbleano

Typhoon Nesat (Pedring) brought rain, wind gusts of up to 93 mph, and flooding along Manila Bay and led to thousands of evacuations, 33 missing and over 20 deaths. Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Nalgae is expected to make landfall in the next 24 hours.

Between 300,00 and 1,000,000 Filipinos were affected and 79,000 people received assistance at evacuation shelters. Crews are working to restore power  in Manila and the island of Luzon in the face of the next storm.  The Philippine National Police, Philippine Coast Guard, and Philippine Red Cross have deployed to help those affected.

NYT: The Philippines: 20 Die in Typhoon
CSM: Philippines scrambles to recover from Typhoon Nesat as another storm bears down
MT: Waterworld - Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Bulacan inundated by floods

The Philippine government runs the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, NDRRMC, to prepare for and respond to emergencies. The NDRRMC reported an estimated P3.9 billion in damages to agriculture and infrastructure.

According to the World Bank, there are over 1,000 fatalities every year in the Philippines due to natural disasters and almost 75% of them are due to typhoons.  On September 13, 2011 the World Bank approved a USD 500 million contingent credit line to the Philippines, called the Disaster Risk Management Development Policy Loan with Catastrophe Deferred Drawdown Option, or CAT-DDO. CAT-DDO is expected to provide quick bridge financing in the immediate wake of a natural disaster.

WB: Philippines Improves Rapid Response Capability to Assist Filipinos Hit by Natural Disasters through New World Bank Catastrophe Financing

Post by: Anne Marie Chance