Over 1,000 families displaced by floods in S’west Mindanao

At least 1,102 families in General Santos City, the provinces of Sarangani and South Cotabato were displaced by severe flooding caused by the continuing rains in the area the last three days.
Jerome Barranco, Office of Civil Defense (OCD)-Region assistant director, said Tuesday three major flooding incidents have been so far reported in the region as a result of the almost nonstop rains spawned by the entry of another Low Pressure Area (LPA) and the continuing Inter-tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) affecting Mindanao.
In Norala town, South Cotabato seven villages were hit by severe flooding on Sunday afternoon due to the overflowing of several rivers.
The floods directly affected some 526 families, damaged a bridge and about 79 hectares of palay farmlands, a report from the Norala Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said.
Several villages in Gensan were partially submerged in floodwaters due to the swelling of irrigation channels and other waterways traversing various low-lying villages following hours of heavy rain. [Allen V. Estabillo/MindaNews]