2 Davao Occidental towns under calamity state

Davao Occidental map. INQUIRER FILES

DAVAO CITY—The towns of Malita and Don Marcelino in Davao Occidental have been placed under a state of calamity following flooding and landslides that hit these areas in the last week of 2024.

Reports from the Office of Civil Defense showed that 24,780 families (112,738 people) in the entire Davao Region had been affected by floods and landslides triggered by rains brought about by the intertropical convergence zone last week.

READ: Davao Oriental placed under state of calamity due to floods, landslides

Of the 574 families (2,252 people) displaced, a total of 192 families (342 people) stayed in seven evacuation sites across Davao Occidental while 382 families, most of them in Davao de Oro, sought shelter with relatives.

In Davao Occidental, the worst hit area was the capital town of Malita, where 24 villages were submerged in floodwaters at the height of heavy rains on Dec. 26, affecting 9,058 families (33,607 people). The town council issued the calamity declaration on Dec. 28.

Assistance

In Don Marcelino, 2,753 families (14,360 people) in 12 barangays were affected by floods, prompting local officials to place the town under a state of calamity also on Dec. 28.

The state of calamity declaration will pave the way for the release of the local governments’ calamity funds so they can extend assistance to residents affected by the natural disaster.

Earlier, the OCD reported one resident dead and two missing due to the widespread flooding.

Police Capt. Wendell Garcia, deputy chief of the Malita police, told the Inquirer that the body of Jhonrey Bongkil, 19, a resident of Barangay Little Baguio, an area hit by landslides, was found by a rescue team. —GERMELINA LACORTE