Storm clouds come ashore. INQUIRER FILE
DAVAO CITY, Philippines – Two people died and another was missing as flooding and landslides hit a large part of Southern Mindanao due to incessant rain brought by a cold front, disaster and local officials said Sunday.
Randy Loy, provincial disaster action officer of Compostela Valley, said Dennis Pesadilla and Rommel Gogo died due to landslides in the towns of Compostela and Montevista, respectively, as moderate to heavy rain pounded the province since Saturday morning.
Pesadilla was killed when a slide hit the mining village of Ngan in Compostela past 4 p.m. while Gogo died when a portion of a hill cascaded onto a part of Barangay Tapia, Montevista town.
Twelve-year old Krisel Hermosura went missing after she was swept away by the surging Handurumog River in Nabunturan past Saturday noon, and her grandmother was hurt while attempting to rescue her, Loy said.
As of 2 a.m., Sunday, at least 907 families from six of the province’s 11 towns have fled to safer grounds. They consisted 458 families from Monkayo, 174 families from Laak, 178 families from Compostela, at least 49 from Montevista, 42 from New Bataan and six families from Maco.
Landslides toppled electric poles in parts of Monkayo, rendering the town without power up to Sunday, the Davao del Norte Electric Cooperative (Daneco) said.
The slides also covered portions of the Pan-Philippine Highway, particularly in Tapia, Montevista, disrupting traffic.
The highway has since been cleared of debris and became passable to all vehicles as of 6 a.m. Sunday.
In Davao del Norte, a man was pulled alive by rescuers following a landslide in Monte Dujali, San Isidro town, the Davao del Norte Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (PDRRMO) said on Sunday.
The unidentified man was being treated for injuries at the Kapalong District Hospital.
As of 8 a.m., Sunday, at least 3,119 people have evacuated throughout Davao del Norte due to flooding, the PDRRMO said, although the figures were expected to rise.
There were also reports of infrastructure damage, like two bridges collapsing in the villages of Limbaan and Mambing in New Corella town.
In Davao Oriental, soldiers and rescue workers assisted the evacuation of 112 families from six barangays near the Aragon Dam in Cateel town due to the threat of flooding, according to Karen Deloso, provincial information officer.
Deloso said the provincial government had prepositioned about 1,000 food packs and other assistance for the evacuees.
In Davao City, at least 1,050 persons from the villages of Lasang and Bunawan have been moved to safer grounds, said Leslie Francisco, Office of the Civil Defense Southern Mindanao spokesperson.
The bad weather which was brought by the tail-end of a cold front over Mindanao was expected to prevail until Monday, with state meteorologists and disaster officials warning of moderate to heavy rainfall still affecting Davao Region for several days. /cbb