At least 281 individuals in two barangays of Bacolod were evacuated after flashfloods hit low-lying areas in the southern part of the city, data from the Bureau of Fire Protection Oct. 21 showed.
Among these are 252 individuals from the area of Fatima 2 Isla Noah in Barangay Sum-ag now staying at Sum-ag Elementary School.
Some 29 individuals in Purok Maninihon, Barangay Pahanocoy, were also rescued and brought to Medalla Integrated School in Barangay Tangub.
Bacolod and Talisay City suspended classes, from pre-school to senior high school, starting Monday at noon and also on Tuesday.
Cancellation of classes also took effect in all levels in the cities of Silay, Cadiz, Victorias and Escalante, as well as E.B. Magalona town Oct. 21.
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian, meanwhile, instructed the Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) to be on high alert and be prepared to provide assistance and resource augmentation to all local government units (LGUs) along the track of Tropical Depression (TD) Kristine.
The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) also called on those living in areas on the path of “Kristine” to “undertake heightened preparedness” as the weather disturbance is expected to affect 30 million persons in various regions nationwide.
OCD administrator Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno added that this significant increase from an earlier estimate of one million underscores the cyclone’s potential to affect a vast population from Luzon to Mindanao.
“According to the latest forecast from the DSWD, the number of potential victims has surged to 30 million. This is a considerable population at risk, and we need all hands on-deck to mitigate the impacts of this disaster,” Nepomuceno said in a statement.
The Mines and Geosciences Bureau has reported that over 18,000 barangays are at risk of rain-induced landslides and floods, particularly in Western, Central, and Eastern Visayas, Cordillera Administrative Region, Ilocos region, Mimaropa, Northern Mindanao, Soccsksargen, and Zamboanga Peninsula. | PNA
