By Leilanie G. Adriano
LAOAG CITY—Strong winds and heavy rains brought by supertyphoon “Nando” (international name Ragasa) have left over PHP40.2 million worth of initial agriculture damage in Ilocos Norte, the Provincial Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) said on Wednesday, September 24, 2025.
Based on its initial report, the PDRRMC said the damage was mostly on hybrid rice crops that were about to be harvested.
“Strong winds hit rice crops that were still under flowering and fruiting stage while some high-value crops were submerged in floodwater,” PDRRMC head Marcel Tabije said in an interview.
As of Wednesday afternoon, estimated damage on roads and bridges has reached PHP644,600, according to the PDRRMC report.
Nando also left 1,174 damaged houses in the province, of which 16 are classified as “totally damaged” and 1,158 as “partially damaged.”
Affected families were placed at 3,748, equivalent to 9,789 individuals residing in 131 barangays across Ilocos Norte.
Local officials from the provincial, city, and municipal levels visited evacuation centers to provide food packs and hygiene kits, among others.
Latest report from the PDRRMC showed a total of 178 families or 563 individuals staying in evacuation centers due to damaged or flooded houses.
Except for health services and emergency responders, work in government offices as well as classes in all levels in both public and private schools remained suspended on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, in a public announcement, the city government of Batac is calling on farmers with crop insurance to immediately report damage to the City Agriculture Office for proper validation.
The farmers were reminded to take photos of the damage, be it on crops, livestock, machinery or infrastructure, within their farmland prior to reporting to authorities.
In Currimao, the Municipal Agriculture Office said the filing of insurance claims starts on September 25, 2025, at the Farmers Livelihood and Training Center.
The farmers were reminded to bring with them at least two valid identification cards and a detailed information of typhoon damage.
Gov’t aid pours in for for ‘Nando’-hit Pagudpud
RELIEF items—from food packs to animal feeds—have started pouring in for families in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte, which is under state of calamity due to the effects of supertyphoon “Nando”.
Among the items that were turned over were 100 family food packs from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and buckets containing rice, canned goods and instant foods from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).
Also turned over were animal feeds worth PHP360,000 and veterinary medicines for affected farmers and poultry raisers.
Ilocos Norte Governor Cecilia Araneta-Marcos personally led the distribution at the Pagudpud Cultural and Sports Complex.
“The most important thing is you are safe. Your livelihood can be replaced,” Araneta-Marcos told the recipients during the distribution of the relief aid.
The municipal board placed the town under a state of calamity on September 25, 2025 through Municipal Resolution No. 2025B-054.
The declaration allows the local government to utilize calamity funds for relief and rehabilitation efforts for the affected residents and damaged infrastructure.
Local officials estimate that damage in the municipality due to “Nando” could reach PHP207 million for infrastructure and PHP12 million for agriculture.
Provincial veterinarian Loida Valenzuela said there were reported livestock deaths and damaged animal shelters, prompting them to prioritize the delivery of veterinary medicines and animal feeds to affected poultry farmers.
Region 1 coops unite to help restore power in typhoon-hit Ilocos Norte
MEANWHILE, electric cooperatives from Region 1 on September 25, 2025 sent five teams to Ilocos Norte to help restore electricity in areas left without power in the aftermath of the super-typhoon.
Composed of 36 linemen from Pangasinan, La Union, and Ilocos Sur, the teams arrived at the Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative’s (INEC) main office here in the morning before they were deployed to various parts of the province to speed up the repair of damaged transmission lines.
“Kami po ay nandito ngayon para tumulong sa mga nasalanta ng bagyo. Sa lahat ng mga member-consumers, gagawin po namin lahat ang aming makakaya para mapabilis ang pagpapailaw sa buong probinsiya,” Jesus Ermie Salangad, lead team of the Central Pangasinan Electric Cooperative said.
John Philip Dungan of the La Union Electric Cooperative said they came in “full force” to assist INEC in restoring electricity in the province.
Ilocos Norte Vice Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc, in a statement, thanked the cooperatives for their assistance in bringing normalcy back to the province.
“We sincerely thank the Region 1 Electric Cooperative Task Force, which includes ISECO, LUELCO, PANELCO I, CENPELCO, and PANELCO III, for coming to Ilocos Norte and lending their time and expertise to help speed up power restoration efforts across the province,” he said.
As of 5 p.m. on September 24, 2025, INEC has energized 267 out of 559 barangays in the province, or a 66.91-percent energization level.
This means a total of 117,094 households have been energized out of the 190,000 registered member-consumers.
“We are still in the process of restoring power along the remaining 30 percent of barangays in the province. This is around 78,000 households that remained to be unserved,” INEC said in a statement on September 25, as it appealed for patience and understanding from affected consumers.
When typhoon “Emong” hit Pangasinan in July, INEC sent seven of its linemen and a foreman to Pangasinan to assist in restoring electricity in the province.
Typhoon-hit farmers start filing insurance claims
HUNDREDS of farmers in Currimao, Ilocos Norte can now file insurance claims for the crops damaged by the recent supertyphoon which lashed Northern Luzon.
Engr. Erickson Biag, municipal agriculturist, said the filing of insurance claims with the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC) is ongoing until September 30, 2025 at the Farmers Hall of Currimao Farmers Livelihood and Training Center.
“In the wake of ‘Nando’, which struck northern Ilocos on September 18 to 22, 2025, numerous farmers across the municipality suffered significant damage to their agricultural commodities, particularly rice, corn, and high-value crops,” Biag said.
The PCIC application activity, which started on September 25, 2025, aims to fast-track the processing of crop insurance claims for affected farmers, according to Biag.
Biag said they are expecting around 800 farmers from the different barangays of Currimao to show up and file their claims application.
As of Friday afternoon, 304 farmers have already filed their insurance claims, pending onsite validation and preliminary assessment to be
conducted jointly by personnel of the PCIC and the Municipal Agriculture Office (MAO).
With the help of MAO personnel, farmers-applicants were guided in completing the necessary documentary requirements for insurance processing.
While waiting to be served, they were oriented about insurance coverage and future climate risk mitigation strategies.
Based on PCIC coverage, insured farmers can receive up to a maximum of PHP20,000 per hectare of totally damaged crops.
