Tacloban City under state of calamity due to Urduja

Tacloban City has been placed under a state of calamity due to flooding and landslides caused by heavy rains spawned by Tropical Storm Urduja.

Ildebrando Bernardas, head of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO), told Super Radyo dzBB that the declaration was made after a special session on Friday.

Citing a CDRRMO situational report, Tacloban City Vice Mayor Jerry Yaokasin said flooding has affected 80 barangays and landslides were recorded in eight other villages on Friday.

Declaring a state of calamity imposes a price freeze for basic necessities and provides for the quick release of funds for disaster relief.

Bernardas said the effects of Urduja have subsided since 2 p.m., half an hour after the tropical storm made landfall in Eastern Samar.

The cyclone has slightly weakened, packing maximum sustained winds of 75 kilometers per hour with gusts of up to 110 kph, as it cross the northern part of Samar as of 4 p.m.

Bernardas said local personnel are now assessing the needs of Tacloban residents.

He said 4,052 families or 10,027 individuals have  been evacuated in the city.

Tacloban City bore the worst of Super Typhoon Yolanda, which killed more than 6,000 people in 2013. —Nicole-Anne C. Lagrimas/ALG, GMA News