FLOODED. Photo shows a portion of Purok Bayog, Barangay New Iloilo in Tantangan town, South Cotabato that was submerged by floodwaters on Tuesday night (Feb. 16, 2021). Parts of the village experienced heavy flooding after several waterways in the area overflowed due to hours of heavy rains. (Photo courtesy of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office-South Cotabato)
GENERAL SANTOS CITY – Two low-lying communities in Tantangan town, South Cotabato province were hit by severe floods on Tuesday night, affecting farmlands and dozens of households in the area.
Tantangan Mayor Benjamin Figueroa Jr. said Wednesday portions of Purok Bayog and Purok Acacia in Barangay New Iloilo experienced heavy flooding after several waterways in the area overflowed due to hours of heavy rains.
He said at least 14 houses in Purok Bayog were submerged in floodwaters for several hours after a river traversing the community swelled at the height of the rains.
Rushing floodwaters coming from tributaries in Koronadal City and nearby Barangay San Felipe, Tantangan destroyed a riverside propping, causing the waters to change course and flow towards the nearby residential and farm areas, he said.
“Most of the floodwaters have subsided but there are still areas that remained submerged,” Figueroa said in a radio interview.
The mayor said the repair of the breached riverbank is ongoing through the barangay council and local stakeholders.
He said they enlisted residents to pile up sandbags in the riverbank through a food-for-work scheme.
The local government commissioned one of its backhoes to cover the sandbags with earth fill as additional propping, he said.
In Purok Acacia, Barangay New Iloilo chairman Benhur Peñol said they also repaired portions of the area’s riverbank that was overwhelmed by floodwaters.
He said it caused heavy flooding on the main road leading to the area, affecting around 120 households.
As of Wednesday morning, he said the floods already destroyed around 15 hectares of palay farms in the area.
“Most of these were already due for harvest while others were newly planted,” Peñol said.
Aside from Tantangan, flooding incidents were also recorded in portions of Banga town and Koronadal City due to the heavy rains that started Tuesday afternoon.
Rolly Doane Aquino, head of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) Office, said the rapid damage assessment and needs analysis are ongoing in the affected areas.
He said they placed the entire province on high alert due to the prevailing weather condition, which could trigger the occurrence of flash floods and landslides.
He said they also advised the local DRRM offices to continually monitor the situation in their areas and properly inform or warn the public of any looming disaster. (PNA)
