13 families rescued by army as typhoon ‘Mina’ whipped Abra

BANGUED, Abra, August 31, 2011-At least thirteen families who were stranded in the flooded barangays of Cabuloan and Sta Rosa were rescued by the troops of 503^rd Infantry (Justice and Peace) Brigade and 41^st Infantry (Partner for Peace) Battalion, Philippine Army as tropical storm ‘Mina’ whipped here Sunday night.

Northern Luzon Command spokesperson Captain Jovily Carmel Cabading said that the joint 503^rd Infantry Brigade, 41^st Infantry Battalion, Provincial Joint Peace and Security Council (JPSCC) with  the Abra police who were tasked to conduct series of checkpoints inside the town of Bangued versus gun for hire personalities and suspected private armed groups (PAGS) have changed their mandates into Disaster Rescue and Relief Operations (DRRO) to save lives and properties of villagers at the said barangays.

“Soldiers onboard with two M35 trucks and two KM450 military vehicles proceeded to the flooded communities together with volunteers from the Philippine National Red Cross to inspect flooded houses and look for stranded persons,” Cabading said, saying that the villagers were convinced to leave their houses while the water was not yet deep.

In Barangay Cabuloan, two families were carried by soldiers mostly old women to safer place and to evacuation centers, while in Santa Rosa, eleven families were evacuated.

“They were evacuated to the Provincial Capitol while others were brought at safe houses of their relatives in the adjacent barangays, particularly at Zone III of said town,” Cabading stated.

Army 503^rd Brigade chief Col Eliseo Posadas said that the soldiers are always ready to help civilian populace when need arises as their mandated tasks call for it, assuring that all of his troops are well equipped and prepared in disaster response.

Municipality of Bangued is one of the towns that suffered considerable damage to properties from the wrath by the storm, especially agricultural crops due to the proximity of farmlands along Abra river.

“Soldiers are also involved in the search and rescue of missing persons who were reportedly drowned due to heavy current in Abra river. The dead bodies of the missing were recovered expeditiously,” Posadas said. (Jason de Asis)