AROUND 1,000 Philippine National Police (PNP) personnel are now deployed to assist in relief operations for persons displaced by extreme weather conditions in Cordillera, Central Luzon and MIMAROPA.
In Camp Crame, PNP Chief, Police General Guillermo Eleazar mobilized PNP national and regional units with disaster response capability to closely coordinate with local Disaster Risk Reduction Management officials for possible deployment of PNP personnel and resources to areas affected by flooding, landslides and infrastructure damage caused by heavy monsoon rains spawned by Tropical Cyclone Fabian.
Eleazar noted reports reaching the PNP Command Center as of 6:00 a.m. on Saturday of the deployment of 1,064 PNP personnel in 132 evacuation centers across Luzon, which are now providing temporary shelter to 1,755 families composed of 5,858 individuals.
Eleazar alerted the PNP Battle Staff to muster PNP Food Bank resources to augment national and local government support to these evacuees.
Field reports also disclosed that one person died and another was injured by a fallen tree in Camp 8 in Baguio City.
Elsewhere across Luzon, 33 passengers and 140 vehicles are stranded in seaports in the MIMAROPA region, where sea travel was suspended due to rough seas.
A total of 64 roads were rendered unpassable in Metro Manila, CALABARZON, MIMAROPA and Cordillera due to floods or landslides, while 57 areas experienced power outages and seven franchise areas are without mobile communication service.
Eleazar also instructed the PNP Highway Patrol Group to field mobile units to assist motorists along national highways in navigating through detour routes to avoid road hazards, particularly cargo vehicles transporting food products.
Meanwhile, 539 police search and rescue (SAR) personnel have been deployed in five Luzon regions where emergency situations have been reported. On standby are 6,366 police SAR personnel and 2,129 Reactionary Standby Support Force (RSSF) awaiting orders to be deployed in distressed communities, particularly in 85 flooded areas in Regions, 1, 3, 4B, NCR and COR.
These units are equipped with 1,585 vehicles, 90 inflatable boats, 2,868 life vests, 1,037 radio sets, and 292 power generator sets.
Eleazar likewise instructed local PNP units to initiate road clearing operations for hazards and debris to allow unimpeded passage of emergency response vehicles, relief supplies and commercial cargo.
Weather forecast for the next 24 hours indicate that the prevailing Southwest Monsoon will continue to bring moderate to heavy with at times intense rains over Zambales, Bataan, and Occidental Mindoro; moderate to heavy rains over Ilocos Region, Abra, Benguet, Tarlac, Pampanga, Cavite, and Batangas.
Meanwhile, light to moderate with at times heavy rains will prevail over Metro Manila, the rest of Cordillera Administrative Region, Bulacan, Oriental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, and Northern Palawan including Calamian and Kalayaan Islands.