LANDSLIDE. Members of the Rapid Damage Assessment and Needs Analysis team of the Lake Sebu Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) clear a portion of a road in Sitio Lamsufo, Barangay Poblacion that was hit by a landslide due to nonstop rains brought by the intertropical convergence zone. The MDRRMO said the landslide was a result of moderate but prolonged rains from Tuesday night (May 18, 2021) until early Wednesday (May 19, 2021). (Photo courtesy of Lake Sebu MDRRMO head Roberto Baggong)
GENERAL SANTOS CITY – A man died while a major bridge and several other structures were damaged as floods and landslides triggered by intermittent rains since Tuesday hit parts of South Cotabato.
Initial reports from the South Cotabato Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) said the prolonged rains spawned by the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) caused floods along the critical Allah River in the province’s upper valley area.
It affected barangays traversed by the river in the municipalities of Lake Sebu, Tboli, Surallah, and Sto. Niño.
Leonardo Ballon, head of the Surallah Municipal DRRMO, said Roger Barneso, 44, of Barangay Moloy, died after being swept by rushing floodwaters in the Allah River around 8 p.m. Tuesday.
He said the victim, along with his wife and eight-year-old daughter, was crossing the river from Barangay Dajay through a makeshift bamboo bridge when the motorcycle they were riding suddenly slipped, causing them to fall into the raging water.
“Roger was carried away by the strong current and eventually drowned while his wife and daughter managed to reach the riverbank,” he said in an interview over Brigada News FM in Koronadal City.
Ballon said the victim’s remains were retrieved by residents and rescuers at 10 a.m. Wednesday at a portion of the river in Purok Pag-asa, Barangay Bai Saripinang in Bagumbayan, Sultan Kudarat.
Due to the floods, he said the makeshift bridge in Barangay Dajay, as well as similar structures in portions of the Allah River in Barangays Buenavista and Centrala, were destroyed.
He said a concrete dike in Barangay Talahik was also damaged and remedial measures are being undertaken to prevent the swelling of floodwaters to nearby communities.
In Lake Sebu, the MDRRMO reported that the approach and slope protection of Maculan Bridge in Barangay Lower Maculan collapsed due to the floods.
The damage rendered the bridge, which connects Lake Sebu to the municipalities of Surallah and Tboli, temporarily impassable, affecting residents of Barangays Halilan, Upper Maculan and Lower Maculan.
Roberto Baggong, MDDRMO head, said a landslide occurred in Sitio Lamsufo, Barangay Poblacion, affecting a portion of the area’s main road.
He said it was caused by the moderate but prolonged rains in the area from 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday until 2 a.m. on Wednesday.
The affected area was already cleared by members of their Rapid Damage Assessment and Needs Analysis team and the assessment is ongoing for possible damages in other barangays, he said.
Rolly Doane Aquino, acting PDRRMO head, said in the local government's radio program "PDDRMO Hour" they also received reports of flooding incidents in Barangay New Panay, Sto. Niño town and landslides in other areas in Tboli and Lake Sebu.
He said they are currently validating these incidents through the concerned municipalities and barangays.
“We are double checking these so we can provide immediate interventions,” he said. (PNA)
