Some towns in the northern Davao Region block of Dav-Comval-DavOr provinces have declared no classes and state of calamity due to intermittent rains for several days causing massive flooding.
Phone-in information as of 2:30 in the afternoon of Friday from the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (PDRRMO) of Davao Oriental revealed that the municipalities of Boston and Cateel had declared state of calamity.
In a separate phone inquiry, Boston Information Officer Judith Castres said that the municipal government declared on Thursday, Jan. 18, a state of calamity and suspended classes at all levels due to massive flooding.
Severely affected barangays were Cabasagan, San Jose, Caatihan, Simulao and Carmen. Due to intermittent rains experienced since December last year, a road in Cabasagan was rendered impassable and a school in the same barangay is now leaning towards a river below from its location due to soil erosion.
Castres also reported that rice fields in Barangay Carmen were already submerged under floodwater and that barangays San Jose, Caatihan and Simulao would possibly be isolated if waters from a river in the area would continue to heavily overflow.
Meanwhile, PDRRMO Davao Oriental revealed in a phone inquiry that floods had affected 10 barangays in the municipality of Cateel as they experienced long period of continuous rains. Among these barangays were Mainit, Abejod, Sta Filomena, San Alfonso, San Rafael, San Vicente, Alegria including Cateel Poblacion.
PDRRMO had yet to gather the official figure of families affected by the floods as MDRRMOs were still on the process of determining especially in areas which experienced massive flooding. Poblacion Cateel on Friday was swamped with flood-water based on accounts of MDRRMO, PDRRO said.
Boston and Cateel are Davao Oriental east coast towns severely affected by Typhoon Pablo which casteed its fury in 2012.
On the other hand, Compostela Valley PDRRMO Raul Villocino in a text message at 1:30 on Friday revealed that classes were suspended in the municipalities of Mawab, Nabunturan, MOntevista, Monkayo, Compostela, New Bataan and Maragusan and that all MDRRMCs had been on alert status.
Villocino added that road clearing operation was on-going as since Friday, connecting barangay Ngan in Compostela town to Cateel in Davao Oriental.
He reported a number of evacuated families but the tally was not final yet.
In Davao del Norte, the PDRRMO in the province reactivated its incident command system (ICS) at about 9:00 a.m. on Friday, ICS assigned commander Julius Vencio said in an interview.
One team of responders was sent Friday morning to Kapalong MDRRMO and was dispatched to barangay Katipunan to assist in carrying out evacuation of flood affected families.
As of 2:00 p.m. on the same day, Vencio revealed that that the road traversing Poblacion Kapalong was no longer passable by light vehicles due to continued heavy spill over of flood water from Liboganon River.
Classes were suspended at all levels in Kapalong as floodwaters heavily affected barangays Kaputian and Capungagan. Based on reports of MDDRMO Kapalong, flooding also affected barangays Pag-asa, Florida, Mabantao, Maniki and Suaon.
A total of 3,272 families were listed affected or 15,169 individuals. Some of the evacuees were given shelter at Kapalong Gym while others were staying at barangay evacuation centers and some sought refuge in their relatives.
Classes were also suspended in the municipality of Asuncion which also lies along Liboganon River and in New Corella where Saug River flows by.
The Municipalies of Braulio E. Dujali and Carmen are keeping an eye on the flood water levels.
Along with the Braulio E. Dujali MDRRMO, the Braulio E. Dujali Emergency Response Team put up an incident command post in Lower Magupising for possible rescue operation due to rising water level of Liboganon River, information officer Pedeejel Moral said.
Barangays Tanglaw and Kabay-angan of Braulio Dujali and Mabaus of Carmen are catch-basins of floodwaters from Liboganon based on info of PDRRMO Davao del Norte. (PIA 11, Jeanevive Duron-Abangan)
