AFP chief Gapay: Troops rescued more than 260,000 individuals in Ulysses-hit areas

A total of 265,339 individuals have been rescued by the military in areas hit by Typhoon Ulysses, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said Monday.

The AFP said a total of 1,078 individuals from Northern Luzon and 263,444 others in Southern Luzon were rescued during the search, rescue and retrieval operations at the height of Ulysses’ onslaught.

In Metro Manila, government troops also helped a total of 817 residents.

“Our soldiers, airmen, sailors, and marines have switched their firearms with ropes, life rings, and life jackets to respond to the cries for help during heavy and widespread flooding that affected our people,” AFP chief General Gilbert Gapay said in a statement.

“The AFP leads the SRR cluster and continues to work with other government agencies to save more lives amidst the challenges brought by natural calamities and a global pandemic,” he added.

The AFP had deployed a total of 83 SRR teams across the country to assist local government units in their disaster response efforts. Moreover, a total of 83 land assets, nine aircraft, and 18 water assets were also dispatched to help in the operations.

Soldiers were also assisting in relief distribution in affected communities. The AFP said military camps have been used as drop-off centers for the donations to typhoon victims.

A total of 9,110 relief goods were distributed by personnel from Northern Luzon Command while 2,579 were disseminated by troops from the Southern Luzon Command.

“While the AFP has started to shift to relief efforts in some areas, our responding teams continue to brave heavily-flooded communities to conduct search, rescue and retrieval operations in the hopes of rescuing more individuals,” Gapay said.

“Our resilience and Bayanihan have allowed us to hurdle obstacles. We call on everyone to hold on to safety as help is on the way and help will come,” he added.

The AFP is leading the SRR cluster of the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council. Among its members are the Bureau of Fire Protection, Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine National Police, Department of Health–Health Emergency Management Staff, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Office of Civil Defense and the Philippine Red Cross. — Anna Felicia Bajo/RSJ, GMA News