GENERAL SANTOS CITY — The provincial government of South Cotabato is targeting to start the development, before yearend, of a new site for a primary school in Lake Sebu town that was abandoned early this year due to the possible occurrence of major landslides.
Milagros Lorca, head of the South Cotabato Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), said Wednesday they are currently working on the purchase of a new school site for the Abboy Elementary School in Barangay Ned Lake Sebu.
She said the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB)-Region 12 already approved the relocation site, which is located far south of the deserted school in Sitio Abboy.
The 1.5-hectare property was specifically cleared of possible hazards and was found to be ideal as a school site due to its accessibility via the main road, and the presence of ready water and electricity connections.
Lorca said the provincial assessment team is set to conduct a survey and assessment of the relocation site to determine its value.
“Once completed, we will then prepare the financial assistance for the acquisition of the site,” she said.
The official said around 200 school children enrolled at the Abboy Elementary School will mainly benefit from the development of the new school.
She said the school has been holding classes in makeshift classrooms at the Barangay Hall compound since being made to vacate the old site last March following the emergence of ground tension cracks.
MGB-12 declared the area unsafe for the school and nearby houses due to threats of possible major landslides as indicated by the tension cracks.
Aside from Abboy Elementary School, the affected areas included portions of the Seven Lakes Elementary School and Tuburan Elementary School in Barangay Ned.
Ariel Austin Acosta, MGB-12 supervising geologist, said the tension cracks and ground displacements in the said areas were “indicative of a developing landslide” based on their assessment.
Lorca said they will construct a drainage canal to mitigate the occurrence of landslides at the Seven Lakes Elementary School.
She said such remedy was based on the results of the topographic survey conducted by MGB-12, PDRRMO and the Provincial Engineer’s Office.
The school buildings at Tuburan Elementary School were considered safe from potential landslides but at least 20 nearby households had been ordered for permanent relocation, she said.
Lorca said the PDRRMO, in coordination with the municipal government of Lake Sebu, had conducted a series of awareness campaigns in the area regarding the potential hazards.
She said they will tap the affected residents for the conduct of tree planting activities and provide them with alternative livelihood, in partnership with other government agencies. (PNA)
