‘Seniang’ triggers landslide, floods in ComVal; 19 houses damaged

TAGUM CITY, Davao del Norte, Philippines—At least 19 houses were damaged by landslide and dozens of families fled several Compostela Valley areas due to swelling rivers as rains brought by Tropical Depression “Seniang” continued to lash Southern Mindanao, authorities on Sunday said.

At least 33 families have fled to safer ground amid the threat of flooding in Nabunturan and Compostela towns, as rescue teams were put on alert across the province, said Raul Villocino, the provincial disaster action officer.

Compostela Valley and two other Southern Mindanao provinces—Davao del Norte and Davao Oriental—were placed under Storm Signal No. 1, as Seniang churned closer to Mindanao, packing up to 45-kilometer-per-hour winds and bringing moderate to heavy rains within its 300-km radius, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said.

In Monkayo, Compostela Valley, over a dozen families were evacuated as a landslide hit Sitio Bosquit in Barangay (village) San Jose around 2 a.m., said Joan Pintal, municipal information officer. The landslide displaced 17 families or 71 persons but did not cause injuries, Pintal told the Philippine Daily Inquirer by phone.

Local disaster councils in Davao del Norte were also put on alert as major rivers in the province continued to swell, the provincial disaster risk reduction management council (PDRRMC) said.

As of 1:30 p.m., the water level in Saug River in Pagsabangan village, Tagum, was considered critical at 9.84 meters, just 0.16 meter short of its spilling level of 10 meters, the PDRRMC said. (Spilling level means water level breaching both banks of the river).

Libuganon river in Kapalong and Asuncion towns were also in critical levels based on data from six water level monitoring sensors placed in strategic rivers in the province although all major roads and bridged were still passable, the PDRRMC said.

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