LIFE GOES ON The streets of Malalag, Davao del Sur, are flooded on Thursday due to heavy rains since Wednesday night. Other towns in Davao del Sur and Davao Occidental also experienced heavy flooding and landslides, forcing many residents to seek safety in evacuation centers or stay in their homes until the water recedes. —JEOFFREY MAITEM
DIGOS CITY—Incessant rains spawned by the low pressure area (LPA) hovering over Mindanao on Wednesday night triggered flooding and landslides in several towns in Davao del Sur and Davao Occidental provinces, prompting mayors to suspend classes, and for some families to leave their homes.
Hours of heavy rains that started on Wednesday night caused rivers to overflow in Davao del Sur and Davao Occidental, submerging some government centers and villages early on Thursday.
According to the advisory of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration at 11 p.m. on Wednesday, the LPA was spotted 270 kilometers east of General Santos, embedded along the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ).
The agency said the weather disturbance was less likely to develop into a tropical depression within 24 hours.
Reports coming from the different disaster response units in the Davao provinces said flooding was worse in low-lying areas and riverside communities.
The public market located near the river in Malalag, Davao del Sur, was submerged in more than a meter of floodwater. Rescuers used heavy equipment to rescue people trapped in different buildings.
People living near Malalag River were also forced to evacuate on Thursday morning as floodwaters showed no sign of receding.
A landslide at Baluyan Road in Barangay Bolton also rendered the national highway going to General Santos City impassable. The road was reopened to vehicular traffic on Thursday afternoon.
Trapped
In Kiblawan, Davao del Sur, the town’s disaster response team rescued at least seven people stranded near Mainit River early on Thursday while they continued to assist 70 families stranded by floods at Barangay Dapok.
The local governments of Hagonoy, Kiblawan and Magsaysay in Davao del Sur suspended classes in all levels due to the rising floodwater.
In Malita, Davao Occidental, at least 223 families were affected by floods in the villages of Alibongog, Baybay and Tubalan, some of whom evacuated to safer grounds while others stayed to watch over their flooded homes and their farm animals.
The Davao Occidental towns of Sta. Maria, Don Marcelino and Jose Abad Santos also experienced flooding.
Harry Chester Firman Camoro, Davao Occidental provincial disaster risk reduction and management officer, said some portions of the national highway between Sta. Maria and Malita remained impassable to light vehicles due to landslides on roadside slopes. Most of the roads were already cleared by Thursday afternoon.
In South Cotabato, the prevailing bad weather prompted all 11 towns in the province to suspend classes in all levels on Thursday to ensure the safety of students.
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