BACOLOD CITY — A total of 91 houses were destroyed while 102 were partially damaged by flooding in this city since Friday night, figures released by the city government as of Monday afternoon showed.
The latest figures also showed a total of 2,048 or 8,165 persons in 14 barangays were affected, according to data from the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) and the Department of Social Services and Development (DSSD).
Affected were Barangays 1, 27, 28, 35, 39, 40, 41, Singcang-Airport, Mandalagan, Taculing, Pahanocoy, Mansilingan, Alijis, and Bata.
Sally Abelarde, social welfare and development officer IV of DSSD, said the figures are still subject to validation as the number could still increase.
The CDRRMO reported that the affected families sought shelter in various evacuation centers but returned to their respective homes after the floods subsided early Saturday morning.
Some families still opted to remain in the barangay halls.
The flashfloods came from rains in the mountains that led to rising waters around 8 p.m. on Friday. Rivers overflowed including Lupit and Mandalagan, overflowed.
On Friday night, Mayor Evelio Leonardia ordered a forced evacuation of residents in “high-risk” areas as pre-emptive measure for the high tide, but later lifted the order after these areas were declared to safe.
As hundreds of commuters were stranded, the city government’s private garbage hauler deployed trucks to assist people waiting for transportation along the streets.
Some eight local government units in Negros Occidental also reported flooding, including the cities of Sipalay, Bago City, Talisay, La Carlota, and the towns of Hinobaan, Murcia, Binalbagan, and Pontevedra, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Division said. PNA
