On October 7, a large low pressure area developed into Tropical Depression (TD) “Maring” as it made its erratic way towards Southern Luzon. By October 9, it intensified into a Tropical Storm (TS) and pulled another low-pressure area (Nando) towards itself.
On October 10, Maring merged with Nando as it slowly made its way north-northwestwards towards extreme northern Luzon. The following day on October 11, Maring intensified further into a Severe Tropical Storm (STS) with maximum winds up to 100km/h before passing through the Babuyan Islands, making a brief landfall on Fuga Island, Cagayan by 11 PM.
STS Maring continued westward and slightly intensified again upon moving on to the West Philippine Sea, and finally leaving its area of responsibility.
STS Maring may have not been strong enough to transition into a Typhoon, but in the 5 days it was within the Philippine Area of Responsibility, it caused heavy rainfall that resulted in flooding and landslides in 6 different regions in northern Philippines, killing at least 11 people and 22 missing.
In Baguio City, Benguet, Maring brought 625.5mm of rain on October 12, which is exceeded the amount brought about by Typhoon Ompong (Manghkut) in 2018, and is more than the average monthly rainfall for October.
The Southwest Monsoon that was pulled by Maring also caused a flooding in Palawan, that left 19 people dead and 13 missing.
ADRA, in partnership with the ACS Volunteers from Palawan Adventist Mission and Mountain Provinces Mission, was able to provide cash assistance to 1,025 households whose homes were totally destroyed by the floods and landslides. The 2 simultaneous relief operations were conducted from October 18-27 and were able to target 2 provinces and 9 municipalities.
Palawan: Brooke’s Point & Narra
Benguet: Baguio City, La Trinidad, Quirino, Bakun, Kubungan, Kapangan, and Itogon.
The provinces of Benguet and Palawan were targeted due to the severity of the impact of this disaster on their population which caused casualties and totally damaged homes.
Cash assistance was given to the beneficiaries because it gives them the ability to purchase their shelter repair kits from their local hardware stores, giving them also the choice on which materials to prioritize in procurement. It will also give the other families the flexibility to purchase their most urgent needs.