Eastern Samar, Northern Samar towns declared under state of calamity due to severe tropical storm Kristine

Twelve municipalities and one town in Eastern Samar, along with one municipality in Northern Samar, have been declared under a state of calamity due to severe tropical storm Kristine causing massive flooding.

These areas are Maydolong, Borongan City, San Julian, Sulat, Taft, Can Avid, Dolores, Maslog, Oras, San Policarpo, Arteche, and Jipapad in Eastern Samar, and Lope de Vega in Northern Samar.

The town of Jipapad was the hardest hit, with all 13 of its villages submerged in floodwaters for two days, affecting food and drinking water supply.

Governor Ben Evardone stated that 100 sacks of rice and 10,000 bottles of water were sent to Jipapad.

The declarations followed a meeting of the provincial disaster risk reduction and management council.

Based on initial reports, some 6,791 families or 34,488 individuals were affected by the storm, with 1,458 persons evacuated.