Hundreds of families displaced due to floods in Sarangani, Sultan Kudarat

Heavy rains cause rivers to overflow

GENERAL SANTOS, Philippines – Flood waters cascaded down denuded mountain sides, causing rivers to overflow and displacing hundreds of families in parts of Sarangani and Sultan Kudarat on Friday night, July 12.

Coastal municipalities along the south-west portion of Soccsksargen – Kiamba and Maitum in Sarangani and Lebak, Kalamansig, and Palimbang in Sultan Kudarat – were among those affected by flood waters.

Authorities continue to assess the extent of damages even as the weather condition has yet to improve as of Saturday morning, July 13.

Kiamba Vice Mayor Marie Jess Ancheta told radio station RMN Gensan on Saturday, that heavy rains started around 11 am on Friday and continued almost non-stop until several rivers in the town were observed to have overflowed around 2 pm.

By mid-afternoon on Frday, rampaging floodwaters were observed along Pangi River, which passes through the town of Maitum. Nalus River and another tributary also overflowed and inundated nearby rice fields, the town official said.

Before nightfall, close to 200 families from several flood-prone barangays in Kiamba were immediately transported to the town’s designated evacuation centers, Ancheta said.

“Heavy rains went on into the night,” she said.

The evacuees came from Tablao, Kapate, Nalus, Luma, Lumuyon, and Lebe, where floodwaters toppled electric poles and destroyed houses.

In Sultan Kudarat, a road linking the towns of Palimbang, Kalamansig, and Lebak remained impassable as of 7:30 am on Saturday, the Department of Public Works and Highways in Sultan Kudarat said in an advisory.

Landslides and a collapsed bridge rendered the highway impassable between the two coastal towns. There was a road clearing operation along portions of the highway that were covered by landslides, the announcement said.

On Friday night, authorities used social media to inform travelers and commuters to refrain from unnecessary movement amid the heavy rain.

With the extreme weather conditions and the initial damage reported, the DPWH said they closed the following road segments: Apo Park road in Barangay Pansud, Lebak due to landslide; Sangay in Kalamansig town due to fallen trees and flooding; and a road portion in Kanipaan, Palimbang town due to landslide.

The approach of the Sebayor bridge eroded due to the strong water current, causing a portion of the bridge to collapse. The bridge in Barangay Sta. Clara, Kalamansig connects the town to Palimbang town and to Sarangani.

In Lebak, where authorities reported that floodwaters entered houses in several barangays, a fire gutted a warehouse amid heavy rains in Barangay Aurelio Frieres Sr. Authorities have yet to determine the cause of the fire and the extent of the damage.

The town of Palimbang was also inundated due to heavy rains on Friday.

On Saturday morning, the Mindanao Regional Services Division of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration terminated the heavy rainfall warning it earlier issued over South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat. – Rappler.com