HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE SITUATION

REPORT

Response Name: Typhoon Koppu Humanitarian Response

Response Code: PHL-cn-15 Category: 3
SitRep No: 5 Date: 23/10/2015

1. General overview (for EXTERNAL use)

Include a brief statement on each of the following:
General context, situation for children including numbers of children affected and the number
of schools, homes, villages affected. Include the source of these figures.
Typhoon Koppu (local name: Lando) initially made landfall in Aurora Province, Philippines 1:00am on 18
October 2015, packing maximum sustained winds of 175 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center with gusts of
up to 210 kph.

Typhoon Koppu gradually weakened as it made its way across the northern part of the Philippines—causing its
reclassification to a Severe Tropical Storm, down to a mere Low Pressure Area by the time it left the country’s
land mass. Despite the lost in strength, however, its slow movement caused massive amount of rainfall, making
the hundreds of thousands of affected Filipinos living in low-lying areas at risk of heavy flooding.

Initial reports indicate that flooding is most severe in the river basins of Central Luzon (Nueva Ecija and
Pampanga provinces) and Cagayan Valley (Isabela and Cagayan provinces) with floodwaters reaching up to 4.3
m in some areas. (OCHA’s Typhoon Koppu Situation Report #3)

Flooding is subsiding in the provinces of Isabela and Cagayan in Region II while persisting in Region III,
particularly in Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Bulacan and Pampanga as well as Pangasinan in Region I. Low-lying
Bulacan and Pampanga may see initial flooding subside but rise again as waters from the mountains and upland
provinces continue to flow downstream. All of the nine reservoirs in central and northern Luzon reached their
respective high water level for the flood season. (OCHA’s Typhoon Koppu Situation Report No. 4)

All communication lines have already been restored, according to the NDRRMC. Power has already been
restored in most of the areas affected. (NDRRMC Typhoon Lando Sitrep #19)

Latest statistics show that the total number of affected individuals is 2,733,294, and of which, it has been
recorded that 938,209 individuals have been displaced. Some of them still living in 311 evacuation centers.
(NDRRMC Typhoon Lando Sitrep #19)

The NDRRMC also confirmed 47 deaths and 83 injured in 6 regions in Luzon. Four persons were reported
missing.

A total of 103,447 houses (15,289 totally damaged and 88,158 partially damaged) were damaged by the
Typhoon Koppu. Estimated cost of the damages caused by the typhoon to agriculture and infrastructure is
₱9,878,058,303.54 (approximately US$211,408,000). To date, a total of 40 road sections and 5 bridges are still
not passable due to flooding and landslides in the affected areas. (NDRRMC Typhoon Lando Sitrep #19)

A total of 803 schools were damaged—249 totally damaged and 554 partially damaged. (NDRRMC Typhoon
Lando Sitrep #19)

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A total of 95 schools still used a s evacuation centers to date, while school clean-up are ongoing in areas where
floods have already subsided. Schools that remain inaccessible are yet to submit reports. (Typhoon Koppu
Education Cluster Update #13)

Typhoon Koppu is the 12th tropical cyclone to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility this year. With the
strong El Niño that is prevailing in the tropical Pacific Ocean, the Philippines had fewer tropical cyclones,
delayed onset but early termination of the rainy season and weak monsoon activity. The authorities are expecting
up to three cyclones to affect the Philippines in November and December. (Philippines Typhoon Koppu Situation
Report No. 4)

Save the Children’s goal is to mount a 6-9 month response, and to generate US$1.5M to reach approximately
8,000 households in areas worst hit by Typhoon Koppu. We are likely to focus 3-4 sectors: emergency relief
support (NFI, emergency shelter, emergency WASH), education, health and CP. If we can generate large grants
we would take on shelter, livelihood and WASH recovery activities.

Recent context developments

As per the national disaster council’s latest report, the total number of affected individuals has already
reached 2,733,294, and of which, it has been recorded that 938,209 individuals have been displaced. Some of
them still living in 311 evacuation centers. (NDRRMC Typhoon Lando Sitrep #19)

As reports from the affected areas start coming in, data on the number of schools affected also continue to
increase. To date, the national disaster council’s most recent statistics show that a total of 803 schools were
damaged by the typhoon—249 totally damaged and 554 partially damaged. (NDRRMC Typhoon Lando
Sitrep #19)

In Casiguran, Aurora, the Office of the Civil Defense has set up a command center where organizations
should coordinate. The Department of Health’s medical team has also started doing mobile clinics.

2. Overview of the response since 26/10/2015

On 20 October 2015, Save the Children was quick to send out teams on the ground to assess the the extent of
damages Typhoon Koppu has left after it made landfall in the northern part of the Philippines. To date, a
total of three teams have been deployed to conduct rapid needs assessment in the provinces of Aurora (the
area where the typhoon first made landfall in Luzon), Nueva Ecija (a province in Northern Luzon that
suffered severe flooding due to the massive rainfall brought in the typhoon), and Bulacan (a low-lying
province in Central Luzon, that was also affected by the extensive flooding caused by Typhoon Koppu).

Here are some of the latest relevant information from the key assessments in the three provinces:
Aurora (Municipality of Casiguran)
 Some of the residents have started to repair their houses even without help from the government or
other organizations (i.e. they merely used whatever available materials they can find).
 There is an evident need for basic household and hygiene items in affected areas, as most materials
—if not all—their belongings are either lost or damaged by the typhoon.
 The affected population are in need of clean drinking water. The water system of communities
assessed have been damaged by the flood, making these water systems prone to contamination. The
rural sanitary inspector of Casiguran has also declared the water from the reservoir unsafe for
drinking.
 Classes remain suspended in elementary and high schools due to massive damage to school
buildings. Initial assessments reveal there are 15 elementary schools and four secondary schools in

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 need of assistance. Some of the identified needs are: teacher learning kits, back-to-school kits,
tarpaulins, building materials and tools (to repair classrooms), temporary learning spaces and books.
Eleven elementary schools, one integrated school and one high school are reportedly damaged.
 The District Office of the Department of Education (DepEd) said classes will resume on 3
November 2015. They will employ emergency classes system (shifting class schedule).
 Additional humanitarian actors on the ground in Casiguran: WFP and IOM

Nueva Ecija (Municipalities of Laur, Gabaldon and Jaen)

 Residents in areas are mostly farmers. Crops of rice, garlic onions and bananas were heavily
damaged. They need diversification and alternatives to farming.
 Schools were mostly vacated, but they need new educational materials because most of them were
flooded and heavy mud was left inside the grounds and classrooms. Students lost most, if not all, of
their school items.
 Local governments voiced out they are running out of basic medicinal supplies. Even prior to the
typhoon, rural health units are not functioning properly—there is an expressed need for capacity
building of rural health workers.
 There are no available data on children. The communities visited do not have active Barangay
Committee for the Protection of Children (BCPC).
 Save the Children received anecdotal reports from children, during the children’s consultation, that
the needs in their community include: food, shelter and school materials.

Bulacan (Municipalities of Calumpit and Hagonoy):

 The team assessed some existing evacuation centers in the municipalities of Calumpit and Hagonoy,
and below are some of their key findings per municipality:
Calumpit
- The local governments have distributed food supplies, and there was already a non-government
organization that distributed basic items like sleeping mats and blankets to the displaced
families.
- There are accessible health facilities to cater to the needs of the affected families.
- Identified insufficient supply of clean drinking water.

Hagonoy
- The local governments have distributed food supplies, and there was already a non-government
organization that distributed basic items like sleeping mats and blankets to the displaced
families.
- There are accessible health facilities to cater to the needs of the affected families.
- Observable need for family hygiene kits.
 Common data on food security, protection and education in both municipalities:
- People still have access to local markets and grocery stores.
- No reported incidents of missing and/ or abused children. Likewise, no reports of extreme
behaviors from children and adults.
- Since the start of flooding incident in these areas, classes from preschool to secondary school
have been suspended due to inundated schools, barangays and major roads. Resumption of
classes may take another week or until local governments make their announcements.

Save the Children’s response to date:

 Distribution of tarpaulins (emergency shelter), household kits, family hygiene kits, water kits to a
total of 1,801 households in Casiguran, Aurora.
 Distribution of tarpaulins (emergency shelter), household kits, family hygiene kits, water kits to a

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 total of 833 households in Nueva Ecija.

Key beneficiary statistics

Children All beneficiaries
Number of people affected (include source) 1,639,976 2,733,294
(60% of total (Sitrep #19,
affected) NDRRMC)
Number of target beneficiaries (include % of
24,000 1% 40,000 1%
target vs. affected)
Number of beneficiaries reached so far (include %
5,729 24% 10,834 27%
of reached vs. target)
Percentage of people we have reached of the total
affected population