Manila —The United States government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), is providing an additional Php51.1 million ($1 million) in humanitarian assistance to help communities affected by Typhoon Odette, bringing total U.S. support for this response to more than Php1.08 billion ($21.2 million).

With this new assistance, USAID will strengthen its partnership with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to provide additional logistics support to communities hit by Typhoon Odette.

“As friends, partners, and allies, we will continue to support the Philippines in its post-typhoon recovery,” said U.S. Embassy in the Philippines Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Heather Variava. “This additional assistance will help deliver food and other essential items to communities devastated by the typhoon.”

In coordination with the Office of Civil Defense (OCD), USAID and WFP will deploy an additional 300 trucks to transport food and other supplies to typhoon-affected areas. This partnership will also support OCD in delivering relief supplies to remote municipalities and barangays.

Sarah Charles, Assistant to the Administrator of USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance, announced this additional support at a virtual UN briefing on February 2.

This new funding builds on the U.S. government’s assistance of Php1 billion ($20.2 million) announced in December to provide food; water, sanitation, and hygiene programs; shelter assistance; and logistics support to typhoon-affected communities. As of January 28, USAID and WFP have already provided more than 300 trucks to transport approximately 350,000 household food rations, as well as hygiene kits, kitchen sets, and shelter kits to communities devastated by Typhoon Odette.

USAID works year-round to help communities in the Philippines prepare for and respond to natural disasters. Through existing programs, in response to Typhoon Odette, USAID’s partners have transported relief supplies, helped manage evacuation shelters, deployed mobile operations vehicles to support emergency telecommunications, and provided heavy-duty plastic sheeting to meet the shelter needs of 4,800 families.

The United States will continue to partner with the Philippines to respond to natural disasters and support Filipinos in their recovery efforts. Since 2010, USAID has provided more than Php17.5 billion ($342 million) in disaster relief and recovery aid, and boosted the disaster risk reduction capacity of over 100 cities and municipalities in the Philippines.

CEBU CITY – The Philippine Navy’s landing platform dock BRP Tarlac has completed its fifth relief operation in the Visayas, helping thousands of victims of Typhoon Odette that battered parts of the Visayas and Mindanao in December last year.

In a statement on Thursday, the Naval Forces Central (Navforcen) said BRP Tarlac (LD601), skippered by Commander Emerson Oxales, successfully transported and delivered approximately 370 tons of relief cargoes for the relief sortie operation on Chinese New Year.

“LD601 arrived and docked at Pier 4, Cebu City last January 30, 2022 wherein she carried consolidated relief goods and essential items from different government agencies, Philippine Navy units, and stakeholders intended for typhoon-affected communities in Cebu, Bohol and Negros Oriental,” Navforcen’s public affairs officer, Lt. Junior Grade Frances Maye Macapinig said.

Macapinig said organic personnel of the Navforcen, along with its operational and tactical control units, participated in the unloading and hauling of relief goods from the landing craft.

Navforcen has operational and tactical control units in the three regions in the Visayas — Naval Installation Facility –Central (NIF-C), Marine Amphibious Ready Unit, 9th Marine Battalion (MARU, 9th MBn), Civil Military Operations Unit – Central (CMOU-C), Naval Special Operations Unit – 5 (NAVSOU-5), Naval Information and Communication Technology Station – Cebu (NICTS-C), Naval Reserve Center Eastern Visayas (NRCEV), and Naval Supply Depot Cebu (NSDC).

The assorted relief goods and cargoes will be sorted out before distribution to the beneficiaries. (PNA)

This generated a plume that was detected by Japan’s Himawari-8 Satellite.

“The seismic and infrasound signals are not typical of known volcanic processes and are currently being evaluated together with other potential sources,” Phivolcs said in an advisory.

It added that there has been very low seismic activity in the past days, discounting magmatic activity beneath the edifice.

Phivolcs asks the public to refrain from going in the vicinity of Mount Pinatubo.

It also advised local government units (LGUs) to ban entry into the Pinatubo Crater until the source of the explosion is determined.

Likewise, communities and LGUs surrounding Pinatubo are reminded to be always prepared for both earthquake and volcanic hazards and to review, prepare and strengthen their contingency, emergency, and other disaster preparedness plans.

Mt. Pinatubo has been at alert level 0 (normal) since August 12.

MANILA – Most parts of the country will experience rains due to two low-pressure areas (LPAs) and the northeast monsoon or “amihan”, the weather bureau said Wednesday.

In its 4 a.m. weather update, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said two LPAs are being monitored.

One was last located 70 km. west of Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental but has a slim chance of developing into a tropical cyclone and could dissipate in the next 24 hours, weather forecaster Benison Estareja said.

The other, last tracked 1,095 km. east of the Visayas, also has a slim chance of developing into a tropical cyclone.

However, Estareja said it may likely stay as an LPA as it nears the Bicol Region and the Visayas.

“PAGASA is continuously monitoring these two LPAs as these will bring rains over most parts of the country,” he said.

The LPA will bring light to moderate, with at times heavy rains in Palawan.

“Chances of rains are expected in the southern portion of Bicol region, Masbate, Sorsogon. Legazpi will experience localized thunderstorms, while the rest of Luzon (will have) isolated light rains,” Estareja said.

He added that rains in Luzon are caused by the northeast monsoon.

PAGASA forecast the Visayas, Masbate, Zamboanga del Norte, and Misamis Occidental to experience scattered rain showers and thunderstorms due to the LPA.

The rest of Mindanao, on the other hand, will have isolated rain showers caused by localized thunderstorms.

Moderate to strong seas and moderate to rough seas will prevail over the northern and eastern sections of Luzon and the eastern section of the Visayas.

Elsewhere, winds will be light to moderate with slight to moderate seas. (PNA)

In an advisory, Jerome M. Martinez, SBMA Seaport Dept. General Manager said “all vessel movements during the storm will not be authorized… until further notice.”

Incoming vessels scheduled to arrive in the Port of Subic have also been advised “to stay off track of the typhoon” and will not be allowed to enter the port.

Tropical Storm Dante is moving West NorthWestward at 15 kms. per hour towards the Southern coast of Batangas, according to the 5pm bulletin of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Service Administration (PAG ASA) of the Dept. of Science & Technology (DoST).

According to PAG ASA, Dante is packing maximum sustained winds of 65 km/h near the center, with gustiness of up to 90 km/h. (VVV)