Flood victims in Davao del Norte start returning to their homes

TAGUM CITY – Over 5,000 people who were affected when floods submerged dozens of villages in Davao del Norte on Saturday have started returning to their homes Monday morning, disaster officials said.

Landslides also hit a village in Kapalong town, late on Saturday night but did not cause casualties or injuries, said Eric Rosillo, staff of the Davao del Norte Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC).

In its report on Monday, the PDRRMC said floodwaters have subsided in the towns of Kapalong, Asuncion, Carmen, Sto. Tomas, New Corella and in this city and residents who had evacuated were starting to head home.

“About 719 families or 3,545 persons were evacuated from these areas,” said Rosillo.

In Tagum City, about 1,600 individuals were moved to safer grounds as floodwaters from the swollen Saug and Libuganon rivers swamped the villages of Cuambogan, Bincungan, Pagsabangan, Mankilam, Busaon, Canocotan and San Miguel— where 17-year-old Bernardino Elle died on Saturday after being swept away by floodwaters.

The victim was gathering floating coconuts along a river when caught by rampaging floodwaters, said Albert Angco, head of the city disaster action office.

An 11-year-old boy also drowned after he fell off an irrigation canal in Cuambogan village, also last Saturday, but Angco said that incident was not flood-related.