Mindanao flood victims climb to over 81,000

SUBMERGED TOWN An aerial shot taken on Saturday shows the municipal hall of Pagalungan, Maguindanao del Sur, and its surrounding area submerged in murky water following days of heavy rain spawned by the southwest monsoon and intertropical convergence zone. —photo courtesy of Jennifer Motovlog

COTABATO CITY, BARMM, Philippines — The national government has assured more aid to flood-stricken areas in Mindanao as the number of affected families rose to more than 18,420, or a total of 81,630 individuals, over the weekend.

The assurance came from Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian who visited on Sunday the Mindanao areas affected by floods.

READ: Death toll in Mindanao flash floods rises to 5

The floods, which came following days of continuous rain brought about by the southwest monsoon and intertropical convergence zone, had killed seven people, mostly minors, and rendered 14 others still missing.

“We are here to ensure that the needs of our people are met swiftly and effectively,” Gatchalian told officials of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) that included Maguindanao del Norte Gov. Abdulraof Macacua and Cotabato City Mayor Bruce Matabalao, in a meeting here.

Gatchalian also went to other affected areas in the Maguindanao and Lanao provinces and in the Soccsksargen region (South Cotabato, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, and General Santos City).

Combined help

Some P2.5 million in relief aid, from the combined resources of the Department of Social Welfare and Development field office in the Zamboanga Peninsula (DSWD 9), the local government units (LGUs) and nongovernmental organizations, had already been released to the affected families, according to DSWD Assistant Secretary for Disaster Response and Management Group Irene Dumlao.

She assured affected town officials that the agency has enough relief supplies to augment the local government’s resources for distribution to affected people.

Of the 13,328 families affected in the BARMM alone, 298 families or 1,656 individuals, were in various evacuation centers, while 13,039 families were staying in the homes of relatives.

“We continue to coordinate with the concerned LGUs to determine the actual extent of the weather disturbance and to identify other interventions that can be provided to the affected families,” Dumlao said.

On Saturday, the DSWD 9 field office reported that 5,092 families or 18,875 individuals, from 30 barangays in Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur were affected by the continuous rain and flooding.

Of the seven persons who died, five were in Maguindanao del Norte and two in Lanao del Sur, most of them minors. Of the 14 persons reported missing, five were in Maguindanao del Norte and nine in Zamboanga del Sur.

RESCUED Disaster response workers from the municipal government of Pikit, Cotabato, evacuate residents of Barangay Inug-ug on Sunday morning when the water level in the area rose to about 5 feet after Tunggol River, which runs along the boundary of Maguindanao del Sur and Cotabato provinces, overflowed. More than 5,000 families in 22 villages in Pikit were affected by the floods, according to Mayor Sumulong Sultan. —photo courtesy of Sumulong Sultan

At least 50 barangays in seven towns of Maguindanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur remained submerged in murky floodwaters after rivers and tributaries overflowed.

The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) in BARMM reported that all bridges in the most affected areas along Narciso Ramos Highway that links the provinces of Maguindanao and Lanao were already passable.

OCD BARMM also reported that power, water and communication facilities were already functioning in the affected provinces as of 10 a.m. on Sunday.

Search, rescue efforts

After the initial flooding on July 9, another heavy downpour hit the provinces of Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte and Sarangani on July 12, causing rivers to overflow and flooding low-lying communities, residential areas and farmlands.

In Kalamansig town, Sultan Kudarat, disaster workers rescued 45 trapped individuals in Barangay Cadiz and 20 individuals in Barangay Tipudos.

In Kiamba town of Sarangani, Philippine Coast Guard personnel and municipal disaster workers rescued over 100 individuals from flooded Barangay Tambilil.

In Maguindanao del Sur’s Pagalungan town, more than 150 families were evacuated as portions of the Malitubog-Maridagao Rivers overflowed on Friday night and submerged all 12 villages.

The Pagalungan municipal compound turned into a virtual ocean when the water rose on Saturday dawn.

On Friday, the Sultan Kudarat Electric Cooperative said two bridges connecting Cotabato City to the towns of Lebak, Kalamansig and Palimbang in Sultan Kudarat were not passable as the bridges’ approaches were washed away by rampaging river waters. Efforts were underway to temporarily cover the approaches of the bridges with soil and gravel to allow light vehicles to pass through, officials said.