Watch: Daring Rescue Of 18 Filipinos As Boat Battles Huge Waves Amid Monsoon Rains

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) personnel rescued 18 passengers and crew of a stricken boat off the island of Calayan in the Strait of Luzon over the weekend as the country continues to suffer the effects of the monsoon.

MB (motor banca) Geri Ann was traversing the Babuyan Channel of thestrait on its way to Calayan when it encountered large waves and began taking in water.

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Claveria Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office spokesperson Joe Robert Arirao said the PCG and the police immediatelyconducted a rescue operation upon hearing the distress call from the boat operator.

The passengers were taken aboard the PCG vessel while the stricken boat was safely towed ashore.

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Monsoon-battered

Large parts of the Southeast Asian country suffered more monsoon rains
throughout last week, a situation forecast by the Philippine weather agency to remain the same this week.

“[The monsoon] will bring occasional rains over Zambales, Bataan, Tarlac, Pampanga, Cavite, Batangas, and Occidental Mindoro provinces. Metro Manila, Ilocos Region, the Cordillera Region, and the Bicol region will be cloudy with scattered rains and thunderstorms while the rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms,” the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said.

The met agency added that another weather low-pressure area may develop west of Luzon Island later in the week, further enhancing rains and floods.

Rising casualties

Casualties continue to rise even as the rains and the floods lessened over the weekend. The Philippine National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported on Monday that the death toll from the combined effects of the southwest monsoon and recent tropical cyclones from August 1 has climbed to 43.

The fatalities were mostly due to drowning and landslides, while millions of individuals across multiple regions in Luzon and other affected areas have been recorded, the Council said.

The heavy rains were driven by the enhanced monsoon, combined with tropical cyclones with local names Luis, Maymay, Neneng, and Pilandok.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Department of Agriculture reported that crop damage due to excessive rain and flooding has risen to P4.13 billion (Dh242 million).

The country's rice stocks have also slid to 2.18 million metric tons, far from the agency's 100-day ideal buffer stock of 3.7 million metric tons.

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