BY RHENJIE MARIE CALANTAS
ILOILO – Due to heavy rains brought by Tropical Storm (TS) “Paeng” and the high tide, 18 out of 37 barangays in Oton town were affected by floods on Monday, Oct. 31.
Based on the information obtained by Panay News, the high tide around 1:38 a.m. yesterday was 1.9 meters deep, which added to the height of the flood.
According to Vice Mayor Jose Neil Olivares, there were an estimated 3,200 families or 19,000 individuals affected.
He said some residents were still staying in the evacuation centers because floodwaters have not subsided yet.
“Panawagan lang namon ang bulig halin sa gobyerno, especially ang drainage system gid kay kun magsulod ang tubi senimana pa kag maggwa tungod sa drainage nila,” said Jose Rolle Subaldo, one of the affected residents.
Meanwhile, municipal administrator Eusebio Villavicencio told Panay News they have rescued first the elderly and those bedridden as they have not anticipated the sudden rise of flood waters.
“Nakita namon ang gulpi gid nga pagtaas sang tubi kag ready man ang amon mga rescuers and team of volunteers. Ang problema lang ni is wala namon na-anticipate ang pagtaas sang tubi, so damo mga katigulangan especially bedridden ang gina-una gid rescue. So far, subong ara naman sila sa designated evacuation centers naton,” Villavicencio said.
As of writing, the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) is gathering the number of destroyed houses, especially those near coastal areas and rivers.
Food packs are also continuously distributed to the affected residents./PN
