Trapped by poverty in Iloilo’s flood-prone danger zones

By Mariela Angella Oladive

Social and economic constraints have kept many families from moving away from hazard-prone areas despite recurring flooding, landslides and other weather-related incidents, including recent ones triggered by the enhanced southwest monsoon, or Habagat, intensified by Tropical Cyclone Inday, the Iloilo Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) said.

As of 6 a.m. July 14, the PDRRMO recorded one death and 2,025 affected families, or 6,739 individuals, in 139 barangays across 16 municipalities.

The province also logged 17 flooding incidents and five rain-induced landslides.

Twelve houses were damaged, including three that were destroyed and nine that sustained partial damage.

Nine evacuation centers remained operational, sheltering 356 individuals, while another 3,460 people stayed outside them, either with relatives or in other temporary shelters.

PDRRMO chief Cornelio Salinas said that although Iloilo was not directly along the track of Inday, the province still experienced significant flooding, with many affected households located in areas previously identified through hazard mapping as flood- or landslide-prone.

“The affected homes are now considered danger zones. They need slope protection, and residents should reassess whether they should continue living there. These areas have already been hazard-mapped as flood-susceptible, but some people […] remain,” Salinas said in an interview.

“There are societal issues that the DRRMO cannot solve,” he stressed.

Salinas said poverty, limited income and the lack of available land or alternative housing often leave families with little choice but to remain in areas vulnerable to flooding and landslides despite the recurring risks.

“The situation over the past two days shows that we should prepare for more extreme weather events,” he said, noting that increasingly unpredictable weather conditions continue to heighten flood risks.

He urged residents living in identified danger zones to heed government advisories and evacuate immediately whenever authorities issue warnings.

Salinas said local disaster risk reduction offices can prepare communities, conduct evacuations and respond to emergencies, but long-term flood mitigation requires broader intervention from national and local government agencies.

He added that heavily silted rivers and waterways continue to aggravate flooding, but rehabilitating them remains beyond the financial and logistical capacity of most local governments.

“Local governments cannot afford dredging machines, backhoes, fuel, and other equipment needed to widen and rehabilitate waterways. The situation cannot be solved by municipal disaster offices alone,” Salinas said.

He said achieving disaster resilience requires a whole-of-society approach that extends beyond emergency response and involves sustained investments in prevention and climate adaptation.

“Our goal at the tactical level is zero casualties. But at the strategic level, achieving disaster resilience requires a whole-of-society approach. It will take resources, manpower, funding, aggressive tree planting, and resilient infrastructure,” he said.

The enhanced southwest monsoon, strengthened by Tropical Cyclone Inday, brought widespread rainfall across Western Visayas in recent days, causing flooding, landslides and evacuations in several municipalities despite the storm remaining outside the Philippine landmass.

Inday, known internationally as Bavi, was the ninth tropical cyclone to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility in 2026, according to PAGASA. It peaked as a super typhoon before weakening and exiting the country’s forecast area on July 11, moving toward Taiwan and mainland China, while the monsoon it enhanced continued to soak the region.

Ahead of the rains, the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council 6 placed Western Visayas under “Blue” alert on July 8, prepositioning relief goods and a standby fund across the region.

The Mines and Geosciences Bureau had earlier flagged 919 barangays across four Western Visayas provinces as highly susceptible to rain-induced landslides, underscoring the scale of the exposure Salinas described.

Across the region, the Department of Social Welfare and Development Field Office 6 reported more than 29,000 people affected by the enhanced monsoon over the weekend — a regional figure that extends beyond Iloilo province’s own count.

The latest incidents highlight the continuing need for disaster risk reduction measures, climate-resilient infrastructure and safer relocation options for vulnerable communities.