By Che Palicte
DAVAO CITY – One person died, two remain missing, while 20 others were injured in Davao Occidental province due to heavy rains spawned by an intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) since last week, the Office of the Civil Defense in Davao Region (OCD-11) reported Tuesday night.
On Dec. 26, persistent rains caused by the ITCZ caused flooding and landslides in several municipalities of the Davao region, particularly in Davao Occidental, Davao del Sur, and Davao Oriental.
In a statement, OCD-11 said bad weather has affected 6,476 families or 28,686 persons, as one road section and three bridges in Davao Occidental remain impassable.
Heavy rains and flooding in the province also partially damaged around 321 houses, and 238 others were destroyed.
As for infrastructure damage, 21 were recorded in Davao Occidental and two in Davao del Norte at an estimated cost of PHP215 million. Given the situation, Malita town in Davao Occidental has been placed under a state of calamity.
The OCD-11 also reported that on Dec. 30, an initial 1,107 hygiene kits were given to Davao Occidental for the families and individuals affected by the flooding caused by the prevailing ITCZ.
The kits worth PHP941,582 have been transported to the province with assistance from the Department of Public Works and Highways-11 to the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office in Malita town.
“The OCD-11 continues to monitor the developments, even as it prepares to mobilize additional relief items and other resources to aid the local government units in addressing their needs at this time,” the agency said in a statement. (PNA)
