President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has signed a proclamation placing the regions of Calabarzon, Bicol, and Western Visayas, as well as the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) under a state of calamity for six months.

Marcos on Wednesday inked Proclamation 84, placing the four regions under a state of calamity in the aftermath of the former Severe Tropical Storm Paeng.

Under the proclamation, the state of calamity shall remain in force and effect for six months, “unless earlier lifted by the President.”

“More than 1.4 million of the populations in Regions 4-A (Calabarzon), 5 (Bicol Region), 6 (Western Visayas) and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) were adversely affected by Severe Tropical Storm Paeng,” Marcos said in the proclamation. READ MORE