Marites A. Sotelo, 53, owns a small food store near a public school in Alicia, Isabela — scene of some of the worst Cagayan Valley floods after Typhoon Ulysses (international name: Vamco) in November.

That means that on top of the pandemic, which deprived her of her clientele after the
schools closed, Ms. Sotelo has had to deal with the economic damage done to her town
by the typhoon, which caused the Cagayan River to overflow its banks — to the extent
that she wishes for more government aid for small businesses