TACLOBAN CITY – Severe Tropical Storm ‘Kristine’ delivered a devastating blow to the livelihoods of thousands of municipal fisherfolk in Eastern Visayas in October 2024, causing extensive damage to aquafarms, fishing vessels, and post-harvest facilities.
Based on the report from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources(BFAR-8), damage on the fishery in the region due to Kristine has reached to P16 million.
The agency reported that about 2,000 fisherfolk were affected due to the storm with the destruction of 1,442 fishing boats and 1,376 fishing gears.
About 55 hectares of fishponds, 11 fish pens, and 404 fish cages as well as 365 hectares of seaweed farms were also damaged due to Kristine, BFAR said on its report.
Leyte province recorded the highest number of affected fisherfolk (1,269), with the municipalities of Lapinig and Laoang in Northern Samar, and Salcedo in Eastern Samar, among the hardest-hit.
The BFAR said that Leyte and Samar provinces sustained an estimated P1.7 million in damages.
In response, BFAR 8 is conducting donation drives to support affected areas in Luzon and consolidating damage assessments for potential funding proposals.
(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)
