Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Philippines

IDP Protection Assessment Report (IDPPAR) - Displacement due to Typhoon Rai (Odette), Reporting Period: 27 December 2021 – 14 January 2022

Attachments

INCIDENT BACKGROUND

Super Typhoon Rai with local name Odette swept through the Philippines in mid-December just before the year 2021 ended. The super typhoon battered strong winds and heavy rain in several parts of Mindanao and the Visayas. It also brought fears that widespread flooding and landslides may have claimed more lives like the other super typhoons that had hit the country. Communication and power were out in several parts of Mindanao making the rescue efforts difficult.

The Caraga Administrative Region is the most severely affected by the super typhoon among the other regions in Mindanao. Authorities have advised its constituents to take necessary precautionary measures against possible hazards such as floods, landslides, strong winds, and storm surges. In some parts of Mindanao, the super typhoon has also caused displacements because of floods and landslides.

CURRENT SITUATION

Caraga Region: As per DROMIC dated 14 January 2022, around 384,000 families (approximately 1.5 million individuals) are affected in 1,082 barangays in 66 municipalities and 5 provinces in Caraga Region. Of the total affected population, 6% or 21,000 families (approximately 73,000 individuals) are presently displaced.

While others have gone home, the displaced population whose houses were severely damaged remain to find themselves in makeshift shelters and evacuation centers. 61 % or 13,000 families are temporarily sheltered in 256 evacuation centers while 39% or 8,000 families are being hosted by their relatives and friends. The report further states that there are a total of 166,715 houses damaged by the typhoon, 42% of which are completely damaged and 58% are partially damaged.

With the augmentation of support both from the government offices from other regions not affected by the typhoon and the humanitarian community, utilities are slowly being restored. For the entire region, power supply has been restored in 19 out of 48 cities/municipalities. Mobile and internet communication in Surigao City has also improved but remains intermittent in other areas. Also, around 70% of the water supply has been addressed already by the city government. However, the Department of Health in its water sampling test has found that e coli and coliform are present in water sources of the region. In island barangays of the city, access remains limited.

Humanitarian support continues to be high, particularly in coastal and island communities which continue to face challenges on access to lifelines. The local government units of the affected municipalities particularly in the Siargao and Dinagat islands have continued to have difficulties in transmitting reports to its principals and relevant government agencies. Evidently, the number of affected populations continues to increase almost a month now since the landfall. On the other hand, challenging logistics arrangement continues to hamper the speedy delivery of services resulting in some IDPs receiving minimal support. As per an update from the WFP, logistics is coming back to normalcy but remains a concern in the island communities.

Meanwhile, the coordination efforts by the government as complemented by the United Nations and other humanitarian actors are making some progress. The regular meeting has resulted in the establishment of structures and systems that aim to harmonize collective efforts and streamline reporting processes. While efforts are made to ensure the effective and timely delivery of the humanitarian response, the pandemic continues to pose risks to responding agencies and workers. There are reports on new suspected case of COVID-19 in Siargao island, and the LGU may impose strict travel restrictions in the coming days. The Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force has convened to discuss the issues and concerns about COVID-19 responses in the provinces that are heavily affected by the typhoon. Further, the DOH Caraga has issued a memorandum on the travel requirements of humanitarian workers coming to the Caraga Region. Agencies that are members of the Health QUAD Cluster (Health, WASH, Nutrition, and MHPSS) shall pass through DOH Caraga while other agencies pass through the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Caraga for clearance.