Three dead, 139 houses damaged by Crising, habagat

By Glazyl M. Jopson

BACOLOD CITY — Three people, including a minor and a fisherman, drowned while 139 houses were damaged due to heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon and enhanced tropical depression Crising in Negros Occidental.

In Sagay City, a 30-year-old fisherman who had been missing since Wednesday was found dead floating near Panal Reef inside the Sagay Marine Reserve on Sunday.

The city’s rescue team said the extensive joint search and rescue operations conducted by the Philippine Coast Guard, the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management team, and Sagay Marine Reserve Bantay Dagat officially concluded after the victim’s remains were recovered.

Mayor Leo Rafael Cueva expressed his gratitude to the teams and the community who joined in prayers and helped in the search.

“It is unfortunate that our fisherman has died, as we had hoped he was still alive,” Cueva said.

“We extend our deepest sympathy to the bereaved family, to his wife and three children.”

In Binalbagan town, a 44-year-old man from Barangay Cabadiangan, Himamaylan City, was found dead on Sunday, three days after search efforts began.

He was found about 400 meters from JMA Bridge in Sitio JMA, Barangay Payao, Binalbagan.

On Saturday, a male minor was found lifeless at the old overflow in Sitio Mangahoykahoy, Barangay Santol, Binalbagan.

A police report said the victim’s mother confirmed that her son, who had epilepsy, drowned while crossing a river.

He was swept away by floodwaters and declared dead on arrival at a hospital.

Nearly 19,000 families, or 31,400 individuals, have been displaced in 18 out of 31 local government units in the province due to massive flooding and landslides.

Houses damaged

A total of 139 houses were damaged by flooding and strong winds in the province as of Sunday morning, according to data from the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

Fourteen houses were totally damaged, while 121 were partially damaged.

Hinoba-an town recorded the highest number of partially damaged houses at 91, with one totally damaged.

Other totally damaged houses include four in La Castellana, five in Bago City, three in Isabela, and one in Sipalay City.

Partially damaged houses include 25 in Bago City and five in Sipalay City.

The affected areas were Hinoba-an, Cauayan, Binalbagan, Isabela, Sipalay City, Kabankalan City, Himamaylan City, Ilog, Candoni, Hinigaran, Calatrava, Moises Padilla, Pontevedra, Valladolid, La Castellana, Bago, La Carlota, and San Enrique.

In Bacolod City, four houses in Barangay Granada were partially damaged.

Mayor Greg Gasataya ordered the preemptive evacuation of 192 residents in Barangays Cabug, 27, and Villamonte on Friday night due to heavy rains and flooding.

The Department of Social Services and Development–Bacolod and the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office distributed 65 relief packs to families in evacuation centers on Saturday.

Barangay emergency responders relocated affected families to schools and multi-purpose halls.

Agriculture, livestock losses

Thirteen barangays initially reported agricultural losses amounting to PHP1.1 million in Sipalay City, affecting 19 rice farmers and 18 farmers of high-value crops.

One farmer in Barangay Cartagena, Sipalay City, reported PHP20,000 worth of damage to aquaculture.

For livestock, four LGUs reported total losses of over PHP300,000, affecting 18 households in six villages across Binalbagan, Isabela, Ilog, and Kabankalan City.

No LGUs have declared a state of calamity as of this writing.