THE Bacolod City Task Force El Niño will inspect the 61 villages to determine if there’s water shortage within their respective villages, the local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (DRRMO) official said Friday, April 26.

Executive assistant Jose Maria Vargas, head of the cluster of DRRMO, said the task force will check the village’s water supply including the non-functional deep well.

“We will check their deep wells if they are still operational so that we can address the problem,” he said.

He added that as of April 25, there was no recorded crop damage in Bacolod City.

Vargas said Bacolod City is more on sugar plantation than vegetables.

On April 4, Mayor Evelio Leonardia issued an Executive Order creating a task force to study the impact of El Nino phenomenon in Bacolod City.

The task force was composed by personnel from DRRMO, City Agriculture Office, City Health Office, Environment and Natural Resources Office, City Health Office, Bacolod City Water District (Baciwa), and Central Negros Electric Cooperative.

Vargas said it’s expected that El Niño will last until May or June.

After the study, he said that they will make their plans and recommendation to be submitted to the mayor. (MAP)