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Food, water sent to Agrihan, Alamagan
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Posted on Sep 03 2004
Food relief came quick for residents of Agrihan and Alamagan, with the Emergency Management Office augmenting the islands’ food and water supply yesterday morning.
The EMO delivered the goods via helicopter, as the skies cleared up over the Northern Islands in the wake of Supertyphoon Songda.
Jenn Castro, public information officer at the Emergency Operations Center, said the food and water supplies brought to the two islands would last about a week.
Another batch of food and water relief would be shipped to the two islands today to augment current stocks, Castro said. She added that the shipment would include medical supplies for the islands and for Pagan, which was also severely affected by the supertyphoon.
Castro said the EOC, the Northern Islands’ Mayor’s Office, and private companies pooled donations for relief assistance to the northern islands.
There were unconfirmed reports yesterday that Gov. Juan N. Babauta would ask the Federal Emergency Management Agency to assist the victims of Supertyphoon Songda on these islands. Recent reports said that some 36 people reside on the three northern islands—13 on Agrihan, 12 on Alamagan, and 11 on Pagan.
Castro had earlier said that Agrihan’s residents only had 10 gallons of water remaining as of Thursday afternoon, while those at Alamagan only had about a week’s supply of water. She said food supplies on the two islands were low, while that on Pagan was enough for three months.
Songda totally destroyed two houses and blew away roofs of two others on Alamagan and Agrihan. On Pagan, Castro said two houses were destroyed, while a boat got totally damaged. The supertyphoon totally damaged the three northern islands’ crops.
Songda spared the islands of Saipan and Tinian from a possible one-two punch after Chaba recently devastated the two islands and Rota. The EOC reported no major damage resulting from Songda’s storm winds last Tuesday night until Wednesday morning, except for the temporary evacuation of some 148 residents to Saipan shelters due to heavy rains that caused flooding.
