Floods displace 36k people in North Cotabato

KIDAPAWAN CITY—Flash floods in Pikit, North Cotabato have displaced some 7, 400 families — roughly 37, 000 individuals — a local disaster management official said Thursday.
 
Tahira Kalantungan, Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officer (MDRRMO) also said 16 low-lying barangays in the town were flooded after Rio Grande De Mindanao overflowed due to continuous heavy rain.
 
Barangays Bago Inguid, Buliok, Barungis, Kabaculan, Macasindig, and Punol were hit by waist-deep flood, she said.
 
At least 70 percent of the population of Barangays Inug-og, Talitay, Rajamuda, Kalibet, Caticalan, Nabundas, and Lumayong left their homes, she said.

No one was reported killed or hurt in the flood, but displaced residents are now cramped in barangay halls, Kalantungan added.
 
On the otherhand, she said the municipal government has been distributing relief goods to displaced families, adding that vast farmland areas were hit by floods, destroying newly-planted rice seedlings and corn plants.
 
The Municipal Agriculture Office is still determining the damage to agriculture in affected villages.
 
Meawhile, Kalantungan assured the affected residents there is enough allocation for food packs.

“We cannot recommend these families to return to their homes since our town is still experiencing moderate to heavy rains since last week,” Kalantungan told GMA News in a text message.

In Kidapawan City, meanwhile, the Local Crisis Management Team has implemented forced evacuation of 175 families living in landslide-prone areas.
 
Psalmer Bernalte, the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management focal person said it took them sometime to convince some 1,400 residents, mostly Manobos, to flee their homes. —  Williamor A. Magbanua/LBG, GMA News