By Leilanie Adriano
TUGUEGARAO CITY – The water level of Cagayan River continued to rise on Tuesday, submerging more villages under floodwaters due to Severe Tropical Storm Nika (international name Toraji).
As of 11 a.m., the water level in Tuguegarao City Gauging Station at Buntun Bridge had reached 10.6 meters. Its critical level is 11 meters.
As of this posting, some major roads and bridges are closed to vehicles. These include the crossing, Pinacanauan Avenue, Delpol Street, and Macapagal Crossing.
“Huwag po tayong pakampante. Asahan ang pagtaas pa ng tubig (Let us not be complacent. Expect the water level to increase more),” Tuguegarao City Mayor Maila Ting Que said in her Facebook post, reiterating her call to villagers in flood-prone areas to evacuate as soon as possible.
Latest data from the Cagayan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) on Tuesday showed some 561 families or 1,691 individuals living in 35 low-lying villages of Alcala, Baggao, Ballesteros, Buguey, Iguig, Pamplona, Penablanca, Solana, and Tuguegarao were preemptively evacuated.
Most of the evacuees are staying in village halls and in schools pre-identified as evacuation sites while some opted to stay with relatives.
As the swelling of the river continues, PDRRMO head Ruelie Rapsing, in a radio interview, said the provincial government has a stockpile of 10,000 family food packs.
“With the worsening state of calamity in Cagayan since typhoon Julian followed by Kristine, Leon, Marce, and Nika, we have forwarded a request to the Provincial Board to use our remaining Quick Response Fund,” he said, citing that some PHP19 million remain in their QRF.
For 2024, Cagayan province has a total of PHP55 million quick response fund. (PNA)
