THE island barangay of Pugaro was the most affected area in Dagupan City following the onslaught of Super Typhoon “Uwan” (International name: Fung Wong), according to Vice Mayor Bryan Kua.

It was the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), headed by Operations Chief Vincent Chui, that led the evacuation of Pugaro residents to safety after the area was threatened by storm surges reaching up to four meters high before, during, and after “Uwan.”

At the height of the typhoon, personnel of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) were unable to reach Pugaro by boat due to the strong current of the Calmay River brought about by the approaching typhoon.

Some residents had to be forcibly evacuated after earlier ignoring the Dagupan Police Office’s appeal for preemptive evacuation.

Vice Mayor Kua said CDRRMO personnel later took over the care of the rescued residents of Pugaro in Binmaley town proper, where they had been turned over by the PDRRMO.

CDRRMO Chief Ronald de Guzman confirmed that his team could not access Pugaro from Binmaley because the road leading to the barangay was already submerged under five feet of water caused by the storm surge.

De Guzman added that 16 residents of Pugaro initially sought refuge in the unfinished evacuation center in their barangay. However, their barangay captain advised the PDRRMO that they, too, should be evacuated for safety.

Vice Mayor Kua also credited the liquor ban he enforced as acting mayor—while Mayor Belen Fernandez was in South Korea—for contributing to the city’s zero casualty record during the super typhoon.

“With the liquor ban in effect, men stayed home to look after their families before Super Typhoon Uwan struck,” Kua said. “Without it, some might have still been in their favorite watering holes or loitering in the streets when the typhoon hit.” (Leonardo Micua)