Tropical Cyclone Tino left about P30.29 million worth of damage to agriculture, fishery, livestock, and poultry in Iloilo province, affecting 1,492 farmers and fisherfolk, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office said in its 9 p.m. report on Friday, Nov. 7.

The fishery sector suffered the most, with an estimated P14.18 million in production loss and cost of damage, while losses in rice crops amounted to P10.28 million.

Based on the data, of the 584.84 hectares planted with palay, 124.01 hectares were destroyed and 460.83 hectares were damaged.

High-value crops reported P3.33 million in losses, with corn at P2.42 million.

In an interview on Friday afternoon, Felina Grace Basco, officer in charge of the Provincial Agriculturist Office, said farmers in the province are insured by the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC).

Basco said the provincial government in September downloaded P10 million to the PCIC for the premium payment of farmers who are not registered with the Registry System for the Basic Sectors in Agriculture.

Last year, the provincial government also downloaded P15 million.

“Once we complete our report, we will look into other interventions we can give,” she said.

They will also look into the P50 million committed assistance from the national government, she said.

“We have a directive that upon closing our damages (report), we will evaluate and craft a proposal to utilize such,” she added.

Meanwhile, the PDRRMO report also showed that 51 houses were destroyed while 1,148 others were damaged.PNA