BUTUAN CITY (MindaNews/06 January) – Seventeen of the 25 persons nationwide who died from drowning or landslides brought about by flash floods spawned by heavy rains since Sunday were from Mindanao, the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council reported in its 6 a.m. January 6 update.
A total of 467,916 persons in 586 barangays were affected by the floods in eight regions nationwide, 370,522 of them from 408 barangays in four Mindanao regions, with Caraga the hardest hit.
Of 370,522 residents affected in Mindanao, 350,095 are from Caraga region. Surigao del Sur topped the number of affected residents with 155,471 followed by Agusan del Sur with 135,084
The city of Butruan, the towns of Bunawan and San Francisco in Agusan del Sur and the province of Surigao del Sur have passed resolutions declaring their areas under a state of calamity, the NDRRMC reported.
It also noted that strong winds toppled down the tower of Radyo ng Bayan in Tandag, Surigao del Sur, causing it to go off the air, the NDRRMC report said.
Of the 17 who died, seven were from Agusan del Sur, four in Surigao del Sur, two in Butuan City, and one each in Surigao del Norte, Davao del Sur, Compostela Valley and Lanao del Norte, records from the NDRRMC website showed. One person remains missing in Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur.
The NDRRMC list:
Agusan del Sur
Rogelio Madelo in Barangay Patin-ay, Prosperidad;
Dondie Carl Bolante, P-2, Barangay Magsaysay, Prosperidad
Michael Rodrigo Otero in Purok 4, Libertad, Bunawan
Rustico Lamigo Pacaldo in Sitio Caniyugan, Bayugan
Ceasar Alisna Aquilan in Barangay Tagoyango, Sibagat
Felicitas Mabras Macuno in Barangay Salvador, Prosperidad
Roselyn Buhayang Porras in Barangay Salvador, Prosperidad
Surigao del Sur
Roberto Rebasora in Bislig City
Alberto Paradaña Rebasora in Barangay Tabon, Mangagoy
Ramil Lamigo Bobiles in Barangay Tina, San Miguel
Rustico Lamigo Pacaldo in Barangay Mat-e, Cagwait
Butuan City
Dioscoro Albiro in Barangay Maibu
Shielo Carrido in Barangay Maibu
Surigao del Norte
Roberto Dalangin in Tubod
Lanao del Norte
Christine Telostina, 6, in Barangay Lower Sagadan, Baroy, Lanao del Norte (earlier NDRRMC reports identified her as Cristy Jane Celocia)
Compostela Valley
Apolinaria Porras, 58, in Mt. Diwata, Compostela Valley
Davao del Sur
Jonas Caan, Sta. Maria
Madelo was electrocuted when he accidentally touched a live wire hanging from an electric post around 1:30 pm Monday in Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur. e anHe ahe
He and six others went fishing using a battery-operated electric rod near the government-owned fishpond that overflowed.
In Bislig City in Surigao del Sur, one person drowned at a beach resort Sunday. Roberto Rebasora, whose body was recovered Monday, apparently went swimming despite warnings of big waves whipped by strong winds and heavy rains, according to a police report.
Porras died in a landslide in Monkayo, Compostela Valley.
1 missing
Paning Poras of Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur wsa reported missing, according to the Provincial Disaster Risk Response and Management Council (PDRRMC).
In Surigao del Norte, Roberto Dalangin, of Barangay Cawilan, Tubod town, was declared missing by his family since January 3, a police report said. In the NDRRMC report of 6 p.m. January 5, Dalangin was reported as among the dead.
Dalangin was last seen in Sitio Tugonan, Barangay Mabini, Surigao City trying to retrieve some falcata logs floating along the river but was swept away by strong currents.
According to the Agusan del Sur PDRRMC , 11,961 people sought higher grounds when the Agusan River overflowed, flooding the towns of San Francisco, Prosperidad, Talacogon, San Luis, La Paz, Veruela, Bunawan, Sta. Josefa, Loreto , Bayugan, Rosario, Trento, Esperanza and
Sibagat.
The PDRRMC listed at least 155, 475 people who were affected by flashfloods. They were housed in 17 evacuation centers in their respective municipalities, but many have already returned home, the report added.
The Philippine Information Agency in the province said that at the onset of the floods, eight houses were totally damaged and 10 others were partially damaged. Damage was placed at P140,000.
Damage to infrastructure in Agusan del Sur reached an estimated P4.2 million while damage to agriculture was placed at P35.1 million with rice fields as the most affected.
Butuan City Vice Mayor Lawrence Fortun said the city was placed under a state of calamity on Jan. 4, after receiving a certified report that nine barangays were under floodwaters affecting 30,258 people.
Fortun said the city agriculture office initially placed damage to crops at P16 million and to infrastructure at P10.6 million.
“Under the state of calamity, those affected barangays can now access and use their own calamity funds for immediate response to the needs of their respective affected constituents,” he said.
Aldeberan Mordeno, city social welfare and development office chief, reported that of the 30,258 displaced residents, 4,526 temporarily took shelter in 20 evacuation centers, mostly school buildings in 59 barangays.
Mordeno said they initially distributed on Tuesday a total of 325 packs of assorted goods and medicines to 325 families at the evacuation centers.
Oliver Vicente, Barangay Moan kagawad, said the CSWD distributed at least three kilos of rice, ¼ kilo of sugar, three cans of sardines and a pack of instant coffee to each of 191 families.
The Surigao del Norte PDRRMC had endorsed a resolution asking the Sangguniang Panlalawigan to declare the province under state of calamity.
An initial report submitted to the SP by the PDRRMC placed the damage to infrastructure at P9.4 million. It said that most of the ricefields were still flooded but the agriculture office has yet to receive reports from their field offices.
PDRRMC also reported that some portions of Surigao City were flooded when the Kinabutan River overflowed. It said that Malimono town was impassable after Jubgan Bridge was destroyed.
In Tagana-an town, floodwaters as high as two meters submerged poblacion barangays affecting 1,200 families.
Rosemarie Catelo , Surigao del Norte social welfare and development officer, reported that Barangays Azucena, Banban and Himamaug in Tagana-an were severely affected by the floods. She said 210 families have fled their homes and took refuge at evacuation centers.
Flashfloods also hit 200 families of Barangays Magsaysay and Ipil in Placer town, according to the PIA-Surigao del Note. (Alden Pantaleon with a report from Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
