FOOD AID. Local government workers of Tantangan town, South Cotabato provide food to residents of Barangay New Iloilo who evacuated on Friday night (June 11, 2021) due to heavy flooding following hours of moderate to heavy rains. About 300 families in seven puroks (zones) were forced to leave their homes due to the floods, reportedly the worst in the area in recent years. (Photo grab from the Facebook post of Tantangan Mayor Benjamin Figueroa Jr.)
GENERAL SANTOS CITY – More than 300 families were temporarily displaced on Friday night after flash floods and landslides again hit parts of South Cotabato province following hours of moderate to heavy rains.
The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) said several communities situated in low-lying areas and near major rivers in Tantangan and Norala towns were submerged in floodwaters due to the rains brought by the monsoon trough affecting the country.
Landslides were also reported in portions of Lake Sebu and Tboli towns, affecting major roads connecting some barangays.
In Tantangan, heavy flooding hit parts of barangays New Iloilo, Libas, Poblacion, and San Felipe, affecting communities and farmlands.
Mayor Benjamin Figueroa Jr. said badly hit was New Iloilo after a river in the area swelled and caused flash floods in nearby communities.
He said the local government, through the Municipal Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO), rescued several families and brought them to higher grounds after the floodwaters in several low-lying areas reached waist-deep.
Jocelyn Agullana, New Iloilo barangay councilor, said about 300 families in seven puroks (zones) in the area evacuated past 6 p.m. Friday and took shelter in the barangay gymnasium due to the rising floodwaters.
Affected were puroks Kaunlaran, Bagong Silang, Mahirup, Mainuswagon, Mabuhay, Masagana, and Paglaum.
Citing accounts from residents, Agullana said the rushing floodwaters came suddenly, preventing most of them from saving their valuables and belongings.
She said some of the evacuees returned to their homes Saturday morning to check on their belongings as the floodwaters in some areas already started to subside.
“But there (are) portions that are still underwater, especially in puroks Kaunlaran and Bagong Silang where the waters are still about waist-deep,” Agullana told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) in a phone interview.
She said Figueroa personally responded to the area and brought various relief goods and initial food assistance.
A team from the Department of Social Welfare and Development 12 (Soccsksargen) distributed food packs to the affected families, she said.
Agullana said an assessment was being done on damaged houses, properties, and farmlands, including farm animals that were carried away by the floods, which residents described as the worst in recent years.
In Norala, the MDRRMO evacuated several families from Barangay Lapuz situated near the critical Banga River, based on a Facebook post by its head Aiza Lim.
A number of communities in villages traversed by the river were also flooded as its waters rose due to the continuous rains.
Lake Sebu Mayor Floro Gandam said in an interview over radio station Bombo Radyo that a landslide was reported in a major road at the boundary of barangays Upper Maculan, Halilan, and Hanoon.
He said it rendered the road impassable to four-wheel vehicles but said they already dispatched a team to clear the affected area.
In Tboli, Mayor Dibu Tuan said in a Facebook post that several roads, bridges, and flood control structures were damaged due to landslides and floods caused by heavy rains in the area in the past several days.
Tuan said among the areas affected were barangays Desawo, Kematu, Talufo, Lembuling, and Lemsnolon.
He said responders and rescue teams have been dispatched to assist the affected residents and initiate other interventions, including relief operations. (PNA)
