Google map of Lanao del Norte province.
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Some PHP277 million worth of agricultural crops, structures, and properties were damaged in five Lanao del Norte towns when Tropical Depression Falcon swept through Northern Mindanao last month, according to reports by two government agencies.
The Office of Civil Defense-10 (OCD-10) and the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (PDRRMO) said Wednesday the July 16 storm damaged a total of PHP277.8 million in Lanao del Norte, affecting 5,532 families who were displaced by flooding.
The flood inundated 41 villages in the municipalities of Kapatagan, Sapad, Lala, Salvador, and Sultan Naga Dimaporo destroying houses, roads, water systems, electrical posts, and bridges, the OCD-10 said.
Mabel Galvez, OCD-10 information officer, said 14 persons were reported injured in the storm although there were no casualties.
About PHP59 million worth of fishery products covering in 185.3 hectares of aquaculture farms were lost due to the flood in Kapatagan and Sultan Naga Dimaporo, the PDRRMO said.
PDRRMO said Falcon damaged over 198 hectares of corn fields and more than 759 hectares of rice paddies in Kapatagan, Sapad, and Sultan Naga Dimaporo.
In Lala, the damage has so far reached PHP101.5 million, destroying 6,288 hectares of assorted vegetative crops, PDRRMO added.
Galvez said the damage assessment was just initial as the provincial government of Lanao del Norte is still on the process of validating reports from the affected municipalities.
Roy Secuya, PDRRMO operations officer, said they have reminded residents living in high-risk zones, especially in low-lying areas and riverbanks, to heed the warning from the local government authorities whenever a weather disturbance occurs.
“That’s one of our mitigating measures, to remind out constituents to be always mindful of the warning from our office and local governments,” Secuya said. (PNA)
