ONE person has died and two others remain missing due to flooding caused by the southwest monsoon in Mindanao, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said yesterday.
The flooding has also affected 38,736 individuals in four regions, mostly in Soccsksargen, of which 10,466 were displaced, the NDRRMC said in a situation report.
The lone fatality was recorded in the Davao region and the two missing in Northern Mindanao. The NDRRMC these are still subject to validation process.
The fatality drowned in Barangay Butuan in Jose Abad Santos town in Davao Occidental last Friday.
The two missing individuals were reportedly swept by strong currents while crossing a river in Barangay La Rojas in Maramag town in Bukidnon also last Friday.
The NDRRMC reported flooding in 86 areas in the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, Davao, and Soccsksargen regions. Thirty-seven of these areas remained flooded as of yesterday while flooding in 28 others was receding and floodwaters in 21 areas have already subsided.
Eight rain-induced landslides were reported — five in the Davao region and three in Zamboanga Peninsula.
The NDRRMC said the flooding has affected 9,862 families or 38,736 individuals in the four regions. Most of them are in Soccsksargen which recorded 8,220 families or 32,473 individuals affected.
Of the total affected population, 2,786 families or 10,466 individuals are displaced — 2,687 families or 9,973 individuals are staying at 54 evacuation centers while 99 families or 493 individuals are with the relatives or friends.
The NDRRMC also said 47 houses were “totally” and “partially” damaged by the flooding in the Davao region and Soccsksargen.
It also said 40 roads and two bridges were reported as not passable due to the flooding.
However, the number was down to 21 roads and a bridge as of yesterday.
Seven municipalities were affected by power interruptions. As of yesterday, electricity in two of these areas has been restored.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said over P2.53 million worth of relief assistance, mostly food packs, have been distributed to those affected by the monsoon rains in the Eastern Visayas, Zamboanga Peninsula, and Soccsksargen, regions and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM),
Data from the DSWD Disaster Response Management group showed that as of 6 a.m. yesterday, 16,217 families (73,511 persons) from 77 barangays from the five regions were affected while at least 67 houses were damaged.
Special Assistant to the President (SAP) Secretary Anton Lagdameo and Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian visited Matanog in Maguindanao del Norte yesterday and led the distribution of cash aid under the DSWSD’s Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS), along with other food and non-food relief supplies to the affected families.
The food packs contain essential food items, including rice, canned goods, coffee, and other necessities, designed to help sustain families during the difficult period while non-food relief items nude hygiene and sleeping kits.
Gatchalian ordered the augmentation of the prepositioned family food packs (FFPs) in the Zamboanga Peninsula and Soccsksargen regions after some of the food and non-food relief packs from the two regions were dispatched to BARMM’s flood-affected provinces.
DSWD Assistant Secretary and spokesperson Irene Dumlao said the agency continues to coordinate with local government units (LGUs) to determine the actual extent of the effects of the weather disturbance and to identify other interventions that can be provided to the affected families.
The DSWD has also distributed at least P16.7 million worth of food and non-food relief assistance to communities affected by the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) in regions VI (Western Visayas), XI (Zamboanga Peninsula), XI (Davao), XII (Soccsksargen), and BARMM.
A total of 34,433 families (171,923 persons) from 172 barangays in the five regions were affected by the continuous rains and flash floods caused by the ITCZ. — With Jocelyn Montemayor