PDRRMO Northern Samar Reports Zero Casualties After Shear Line Rains

Posted on Jan. 6, 2026 at 1:32 pm

CATARMAN, Northern Samar — The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) of Northern Samar reported zero deaths, injuries, or missing persons following heavy rains caused by the Shear Line that affected the entire province on January 5, 2026.

PAGASA raised rainfall warnings from yellow to orange between 12:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. as the weather system intensified. In response, the PDRRMC Operations Center was placed under Red Alert status and operated on a 24/7 basis to monitor conditions and coordinate field operations.

The PDRRMO said the Shear Line impacted 24 municipalities and 90 barangays. Flooding was reported in 50 barangays, while landslides occurred in Barangay Washington in Catarman and Barangay Mirador in Mondragon. Rock slides and soil erosion were also recorded in Barangay Trangue. In the municipality of Bobon, dead livestock and poultry resulted in an estimated ₱500,000 in agricultural losses.

PDRRMO head Rei Josiah Echano told Vanguard in an interview on January 5 that early preparedness measures helped prevent casualties. He cited the Pre-Disaster Risk Assessment conducted on January 3 and 4, which led to pre-emptive evacuations in high-risk areas.

“We activated the Operations Center early and implemented pre-emptive evacuation to ensure the safety of our residents,” Echano said.

A total of 1,449 families or 5,332 individuals were affected by the weather disturbance. Of these, 984 families composed of 3,582 persons were pre-emptively evacuated. Forty-three evacuation centers were activated across the province. In the municipality of San Roque, 119 individuals stayed in evacuation centers, while 1,077 displaced persons sought shelter with relatives or host families.

Despite the weather disturbance, all roads and bridges remained passable, and seaports and terminals continued operations. The airport was declared not operational. Telecommunications providers SMART and GLOBE remained operational, while DITO experienced a total service outage. Classes and work in government offices were suspended in all 24 municipalities, resulting in the closure of all schools province-wide.

The PDRRMO deployed 20 personnel to manage response operations and distributed 250 family food packs and 300 hygiene kits. A floating asset was also deployed to assist communities affected by rising water levels, with dams remaining above normal levels.

Echano said the PDRRMO continues to monitor the situation and has prepositioned additional resources in case of further rainfall.

“We activated the Operations Center early and implemented pre-emptive evacuation to ensure the safety of our residents,” Echano said.

“The key is acting before the situation escalates,” PDRRMO head Josiah Rey Echano said, stressing that early warnings and decisive action are crucial in preventing loss of life. “We activated our OpCen early and pushed for pre-emptive evacuation because we cannot afford to wait for water levels to rise before we move people to safety.”

“Our priority has always been life,” Echano emphasized. “Damage to property can be addressed, but lives cannot be replaced. That is why we pushed for early evacuation and continuous monitoring.”

(Photo Courtesy: PDRRMO Northern Samar)