The Task Force El Niño said Wednesday that a declaration of a state of calamity is impending for a hard-hit town area in Albay, Bicol Region.

In a televised interview, Task Force El Niño spokesperson, Asec. Joel Villarama, said that the municipality of Pio Duran will be put under the said condition.

At present, six provinces are declared under a state of calamity: five areas in Mimaropa, namely Bulalacao (San Pedro) and Mansalay in Oriental Mindoro; Looc, Magsaysay, and San Jose in Occidental Mindoro; and Zamboanga del Sur, specifically in Zamboanga City.

The latest report from the Department of Agriculture showed that the volume loss of El Niño-hit crops now stands at 75,092 metric tons valued at P1.75 billion, damaging the cultivated area of 32,231 hectares and affecting the livelihoods of 29,437 farmers.

From the said volume, 48,332 MT accounts for rice losses worth P1.13 billion.

According to Villarama, the current cost of damage registered due to the weather phenomenon is small compared to the lost production value in 2009, when a strong and mature El Niño also occurred in the Philippines.

“Compared doon sa mga nakaraang El Niño, strong and mature El Niño years, meron tayong tatlo actually for this year. So 1997, 2009, atsaka 2015. Yung 2009 yung may pinakamalaking pinsala in terms of agricultural loss, nasa P17 billion. Compared to the figure we have now, it's P1.75 billion mallit pa ito (Compared to the previous El Niño, strong and mature El Niño years, we actually have three for this year. So 1997, 2009, and 2015. 2009 was the one with the biggest damage in terms of agricultural loss, at P17 billion. Compared to the figure we have now, its P1.75 billion is still small).”

He added: “Pero siyempre hindi natin minamaliit ang impact nito sa mga magsasaka. So ang focus natin sa Task Force El Niño ay matulungan ang halos 30,000 na magsasaka na apektado sa walong rehiyon para mapunan o matulungan ang kanilang mga pangangailangan lalo’t napinsala ang kanilang sakahan (But of course, we do not underestimate its impact on our farmers. So our focus in the El Niño Task Force is to help the nearly 30,000 farmers affected in eight regions sustain or help their needs, especially since their farms were damaged).”

Based on the task force’s latest monitoring, 67 provinces currently experience different levels of El Niño, wherein 30 provinces experience drought.

DA spokesperson, Asec. Arnel de Mesa, earlier said that the dry spell has creeped out in eight regions, namely in Region I (Ilocos Region), Region II (Cagayan Valley), Region III (Central Luzon), Region IV (Calabarzon and Mimaropa), Region VI (Western Visayas), Region IX (Zamboanga Peninsula), and Region XII (Soccsksargen).

Over P379 million worth of assistance has been extended by the DA to the affected farmers.