GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/28 June) — At least 40 families were displaced as flashfloods ravaged two riverside communities in Norala town in South Cotabato on Monday night.
Engr. Nelson Gleyo, head of the Norala Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, said Tuesday the floods occurred after more than an hour of heavy rains in the area late Monday afternoon.
He said the water level of the Banga River mainly rose and triggered flashfloods in nearby communities due to the heavy rains.
It affected 20 families in Barangay Liberty and another 20 families in Barangay Matapol, he said.
Gleyo said they forcibly evacuated the affected residents at around 9 p.m. Monday as the river’s water level continued to rise.
“We deemed the affected areas unsafe due to the situation so we implemented a forced evacuation,” he told radio station dxKR.
He said the evacuees from Barangay Liberty are presently taking temporary shelter at their barangay hall while those from Barangay Matapol are at Matapol Elementary School.
The municipal government has scheduled the delivery of food and other relief items to the evacuees on Tuesday morning, he said.
“As of now, we can’t allow them yet to return to their homes. Based on our assessment, the floods have slowly subsided but the river’s water level is still high,” Gleyo said.
The official said they are currently monitoring the situation in several other critical areas within the municipality.
He said they received information early Tuesday that a dike situated near a school in Bo. 7 of Norala had collapsed at the height of the rains on Monday. (MindaNews)