GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/03 July) — Seventeen houses were damaged in Tupi town in South Cotabato after strong winds battered three of its villages on Thursday afternoon.
Emil Sumagaysay, Tupi Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office head, said Friday the incident occurred at the height of heavy rains that started at around 1 p.m.
Citing their initial assessment, he said eight houses in Sitio Atbol of Barangay Acmonan, seven in Barangay Tubeng and two in Barangay Poblacion sustained partial damages as a result of the weather phenomenon.
“Two of the houses were damaged by fallen trees while the roof of the 15 other houses were blown away by the strong winds,” he said in an interview over radio station dxKR.
Sumagaysay said two families, one in Tubeng and one in Poblacion, sought shelter at the homes of their relatives.
The official said there were also reported damages to various crops in Barangay Acmonan due to the incident.
He said Tupi Mayor Reynaldo Tamayao has dispatched personnel from the Municipal Agriculture Office to assess and validate the crop damages.[]
The local government has already delivered relief goods and other related items to the affected families, he said.
Sumagaysay said they will submit a report on the incident to the Office Civil Defense, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and other government agencies to facilitate the release of additional assistance.
He said they will specifically request for emergency shelter assistance from the DSWD for the affected residents.
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