Half of Bicol prone to flood and landslides

LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines—Half of the Bicol region is prone to floods and landslides, prompting the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) to warn people living low-lying villages, near river channels and shorelines as well as mountain slopes to be extra cautious in light of the onset of the rainy season this month.

Theodore Rommel Pestaño, MGB  regional director, said five of seven cities and 55 of 107 municipalities in Bicol are prone to floods and landslides as indicated by the geo-hazard mapping study conducted by the agency.

This means that more than half of the 114 local government units (7 cities and 107 municipalities) in Bicol are under threat of floods and landslides, he said.

In Albay, all of its three cities – Legazpi, Ligao and Tabaco – are vulnerable to floods and landslides as are 14 of its 15 towns, the MGB geo-hazard map showed.

The flood-prone towns are Bacacay, Camalig, Daraga, Guinobatan, Libon, Malilipot, Malinao, Manito, Oas, Rapu-Rapu, Sto. Domingo, Pio Duran, Polangui and Tiwi. Manito and the island town of Rapu-rapu are also landslide prone areas, the study showed.

Only the upland town of Jovellar is not on the list

In Camarines Sur, aside from the city of Naga, 22 of its 35 municipalities are prone  to flooding and landslides. These are: Bato, Bombon, Buhi, Bula, Calabanga, Camaligan, Canaman, Caramoan, Garchitorena, Goa, Magarao, Lagonoy, Libmanan, Lupi, Pasacao, Presentacion, Sagnay, Sipocot, Pili, Ocampo, Tigaon, and Tinambac.

Pestaño warned that the towns of Basud, Capalonga, Labo, Mercedez, Paracale, San Lorenzo Ruiz, San Vicente and Sta. Elena in Camarines Norte were susceptible to rain-triggered disasters.

In Sorsogon, the towns faced with the risk of landslides are  Bulan, Magallanes, Sta. Magdalena, Matnog, Castilla, Prieto Diaz, Pilar, Donsol; while the towns of Gubat, Casiguran, Irosin, Juban, Bulusan and Barcelona, which are all situated near the foot of Mt. Bulusan, are flood-prone.

In Catanduanes, prone to landslides and flooding are all of the 11 towns of the island-province:  Bagamanoc, Baras, Bato, Caramoran, Gigmoto, San Andres, San Miguel, Pandan, Panganiban, Viga and the capital, Virac.

In Masbate, according to Pestaño, the gold mining town of Aroroy as well as the municipalities of Baleno, Mandaon, Milagros and Mobo are at risk.

In the 52 other areas not identified as disaster prone, Pestano  recommended that the LGUs must always be vigilant and be prepared for any eventualities and must heed disaster advisories issued by the local weather bureau and disaster councils.

Pestaño said  geo-hazard maps were already distributed to various LGUs in Bicol so they should treat them as inputs for planning purposes and decision making by the chief executives.

Pestaño said the geo-hazard maps provide LGUs with data that would identify danger zones for flooding, landslides and other disaster events and identify areas to be made as relocation sites.

Pestaño said the MGB was also in the process of conducting another geo-hazard mapping in 19 towns of Camarines Sur starting this month until December this year.

The towns covered by the new survey are: Baao, Balatan, Bato, Bombon, Bula, Cabusao,Camaligan, Canaman, Del Gallego, Gainza, Libmanan, Lupi, Milaor, Minalabac, Nabua, Pamplona, Pasacao,Ragay, San Fernando and Sipocot.

The on-going hazard mapping would exhibit a scale of 1:10,000, with clearer and identifiable hazard areas, and recommended  safe relocation sites. The new map would be larger than the previous survey map with a scale of 1:50,000, Pestaño added.

He said the geo-hazard maps of Albay and Legazpi are also in the process of being converted to a scale of 1:10,000 from the existing scale of 1:50,000.

The new geo-hazard mapping would cost the government P10 million and was being carried out by its contractor, Brass Technology Inc.

MGB field personnel involved in the survey would be equipped with maps, aerial pictures, satellite images, he said.