Rains flood 8 municipalities in Davao, Compostela Valley

TAGUM CITY—Hundreds of people evacuated as relentless rains brought floods to eight towns in three provinces in southern Mindanao, authorities said.

Two children were reported dead in the floods, which hit the provinces of Davao del Norte, Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental. Most of the flooded communities are along the flood plains of Agusan River.

At least 2,000 people in eight towns were moved to shelters.

In Compostela Valley, 425 families were rescued overnight as heavy rain battered Monkayo, Compostela, Montevista and Nabunturan, according to Raul Villocino, provincial disaster officer.

Most of the displaced residents came from Compostela town. At least 87 families were evacuated in Monkayo and 64 families in Nabunturan and Montevista, Villocino said.

Army trucks picked up residents as soldiers and volunteers raced to rescue residents trapped in their flooded homes in Monkayo, Compostela and Montevista at around 9 p.m. on Tuesday, according to Lt. Col. Cesar Molina, head of the Army’s 25th Infantry Battalion.

By yesterday morning, however, the floods started to subside and some evacuees returned home.

Small landslides also forced the evacuation of several families in Barangay Tuburan in Mawab town, said Villocino, the Compostela Valley disaster official.

Two children, including a 14-year-old boy, were swept away by floodwaters as Bitaugan River burst its banks and inundated several communities in San Isidro town in Davao Oriental, according to Luz Jayson of Davao Oriental’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

In a phone interview, Jayson said the fatalities had not yet been identified.

He said flooding was reported also in the town of Governor Generoso.

The rain also flooded rice-producing towns in Davao del Norte, with many families rescued by volunteers in several villages, according to Sonio Sanchez, Davao del Norte’s provincial disaster action officer.