Bacolod under calamity state due to floods
HELPING HAND Rescue teams prepare to evacuate villagers of Banago, one of the 33 villages in Bacolod City hit by floods due to heavy rains spawned by Typhoon “Goring.” The city has been placed under a state of calamity to provide aid to the close to 4,000 families affected by the typhoon. —PHOTO COURTESY OF AMITY VOLUNTEER FIRE BRIGADE
BACOLOD CITY — This provincial capital of Negros Occidental has been declared under a state of calamity as floods triggered by heavy rains dumped by Typhoon “Goring” (international name: Saola) affected more than 4,000 families, or almost 13,000 residents, in the city.
Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said classes in the city remained suspended until Friday to allow the cleanup of several schools hit by floods. Several public schools were still being used as evacuation centers.
“The schools would need appropriate cleanup and maintenance before they could be used by the returning students,” Benitez said.
The city council, during its regular session on Wednesday, approved Benitez’s request to place Bacolod under a state of calamity based on the recommendation contained in a resolution of the Bacolod City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (BCDRRMC).
The council also approved a BCDRRMC resolution recommending the realignment of P20 million for food and nonfood assistance taken from the city’s quick response fund, and P4 million from the COVID-19 response funds.
The declaration would enable the city government to use its calamity funds to assist residents in flood-hit communities, said Benitez.
A report from the city’s disaster response unit showed 33 of 61 barangays in the city were flooded.
At least 4,446 people were still in evacuation centers as of Wednesday.
Benitez met with representatives from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and the City Engineer’s Office, and other city officials to discuss ways to ease flooding in the city.
Obstructions
“Radical solutions need to be taken,” he told them, noting that the rainfall volume in Bacolod in the last three days was 38 millimeters (about 1.5 inches).Obstructions along rivers and creeks, the accumulation of sediments in waterways originating from upland areas and the lack of interconnection of inland drainage systems were cited as among the causes of the recent flooding.
The officials discussed measures to solve the problem, among these the construction of flood walls along rivers and creeks, dredging of waterways and improvement of drainage systems.
Benitez cited the flood protection project in The Netherlands as a model that Bacolod officials could study. The project involved the construction of a series of pumping stations to control water levels and to ensure that excess water is pumped out to sea to prevent flooding.
Councilor Em Ang said the council approved a resolution that she authored urging the City Engineer’s Office, DPWH and city’s disaster risk reduction and management office to review Bacolod’s flood protection plans and programs, as well as explore engineering solutions to solve the problem and protect lives, property and the environment.
“We have all witnessed that after a couple of days of heavy rainfall, the entire city is suffering from [flooding] which, in the observation of this representation, is unprecedented. As we speak, there are still barangays submerged in floodwater,” she said.
