Waist-deep floods hit 5 towns in Northern Samar

Hundreds of families in five towns of Northern Samar might have to spend the New Year in evacuation centers after floods caused by four days of continuous rain pelted the province. The Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) for Eastern Visayas said Friday floods as high as waist level affected families in at least 18 villages in the five towns. "There have been continuous rains for the last three to four days. Yan ang dahilan bakit nagkaroon ng flooding sa Northern Samar (That is why there was flooding in Northern Samar)," OCD Eastern Visayas director Adriano Fuego said in an interview on dzRH radio. Citing initial reports reaching the OCD, he said 13 villages were affected in Catarman town; two in Pambujan; and one each in Mondragon; Lope de Vega; and San Roque. He said that if the rains do not stop, the families forced to flee their homes may be forced to spend New Year in evacuation centers. "Kung tuloy-tuloy ito baka ganoon ang mangyayari niyan. Hopefully sana hindi na continue ang ulan para huwag naman (If the rains continue that may be the case. We are just hoping the rains will stop)," he said. Catarman is a second-class town and is the capital town of Northern Samar. It has a population of 67,671 people in 12,437 households. Mondragon is a fourth-class town with a population of 28,098 people in 5,252 households. Pambujan is a fourth-class town with a population of 25,394 people in 4,432 households. San Roque is a fifth-class town with a population of 19,845 people in 3,505 households. Lope de Vega is a fifth-class town with a population of 11,754 people in 2,114 households. Earlier, dzRH radio reported that as of Friday morning, local authorities sent trucks to villages in Northern Samar to bring the residents to evacuation centers. It said a check with the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) showed there was a cold front near the Visayas. The cold front had been causing the continuous rains since early this week, its "Aksyon Radyo" affiliate station in the province reported. -GMANews.TV