Pampanga residents escape disaster as landslide hits Porac-Gumain River

MANILA, Philippines–Residents along a river in Pampanga averted disaster early Wednesday after a landslide created a small natural dam that was in danger of breaching its banks.

Residents of 43 barangays (villages) near the river banks of Porac-Gumain River were advised to evacuate around 9 a.m. after a large boulder from a landslide fell into the river upstream and created a natural dam.

“This is not a man-made dam. A large boulder blocked the flow of the river,” Director Joel Mapiles, Pampanga Public Information Office Chief, said in an interview.

The affected areas were Floridablanca, Porac, Lubao and Sasmuan, according to Mapiles in an advisory to media.

Authorities went up to the hindered part of the river in Sapang Uwak village and removed a portion of the blockage to allow some water to flow into a nearby creek, Mapiles said.

As of 1 p.m., the situation has normalized, he said.

Torrential rains pelted several areas in Pampanga Wednesday, Mapiles said. Reports said up to 182 villages have been inundated. The height of the flood waters ranged from three feet in some areas to as much as 10 feet in some, he added.