Floods submerge rice farms in Zamboanga del Sur

SWAMPED Water from a swollen river submerges rice farms in five villages in Tambulig, Zamboanga del Sur. —PHOTO COURTESY OF TAMBULIG MDRRMO

PAGADIAN CITY—Heavy rains since Sunday triggered floods in Salug Valley in Zamboanga del Sur province, submerging more than 450 hectares of rice farms in Tambulig town, a disaster response official said.

Nilo Muñoz, municipal disaster risk reduction management officer of Tambulig, said the Salug Dako River, which traverses at least four towns, overflowed at 2 a.m. on Monday and flooded newly planted rice fields tilled by at least 200 farmers in parts of Salug Valley.An earth dike in the village of Balugo burst, inundated rice fields in the low-lying areas of Balugo, San Vicente, Sagrada Familia, Angeles and San Jose villages in Tambulig, said Muñoz.

Disaster response and agriculture officials went to the area on Monday morning, but portions of the road were impassable to vehicles.

No evacuation

Muñoz said that as of Monday afternoon, no resident had been evacuated since houses in the area were built on higher grounds.

Anecita Gealon, municipal agriculture officer, said her office was preparing assistance to the affected farmers and assessing crop damage in the area. Most of the flooded rice lands were covered by Philippine Crop Insurance Corp., she said.

Floods also swept the area in December 2017 when Typhoon “Vinta” (international name: Tembin) struck. —LEAH AGONOY INQ