El Niño prevents calamity state declaration

The Office of the Civil Defense said it is not yet recommending a declaration of a state of calamity for the entire country due to the El Niño phenomenon.

“When April comes, more than 50 more provinces will be hit by so-called severe drought... we only have 82 provinces. There are 52 or more provinces already, almost the entire country is affected,” OCD Administrator Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno said in a Saturday news forum.

Despite this, Nepomuceno said he would not recommend to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. that a state of calamity be declared in the entire country amid the impact of the El Niño.

He explained that every province confronts different situations when it comes to addressing drought season.

“We will assess the situation in each province,” he said.

Based on the records, the government has logged some 20 provinces have already experienced the severe effects of the dry spell.

Nepomuceno said the 52 provinces will likely experience a severe drought this March.

He also cited the recent forecast by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, that the drought season will possibly worsen by April.