AFTER the heavy rains that flooded several areas in the city Monday night, the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) placed Davao Region under blue alert status due to a low pressure area (LPA) that continues to bring light to moderate rainshowers and thunderstorm.
At least 85 families and 395 individuals had been evacuated from different areas in Davao Region on Monday evening due to rising floodwaters caused by heavy downpour triggered by the LPA. The heavy rains lasted for around three to four hours.
OCD regional director Brigadier General Leoncio Cirunay Jr. said there were around 64 families and 320 individuals from Toril, Mintal, and Matina Crossing in Davao City who have been evacuated to safer grounds because of the flood. But they have already returned home after floodwaters subsided later Monday night.
Cirunay said the heavy downpour also left several commuters stranded. He added that the streets and areas affected by rising waters are Panacan to Diversion Road, Buhangin, Bajada, Ecoland, Matina Pangi, Matina Crossing, and Puan.
Davao City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (CDRRMC) and Central 911 head Emmanuel Jaldon, in a text message, said the areas with flood warnings based on its monitoring are rivers in Matina Pangi and Lipadas.
Jaldon said there were 310 individuals from Arroyo Compound, Teachers Village, Samantha Homes, Pagasa Extension, and Urban Kilometer 7 who followed the advice for preemptive evacuation, after flood warning sirens were triggered by the rising waters of Matina Pangi River.
He added that 10 other individuals sought refuge in their village evacuation centers in Lubogan and Sirawan in Toril, following the flood warnings for Lipadas River.
The water level in creeks in Mintal, Sto. Niño, villages Dumoy and Bago Aplaya in Talomo District reached warning levels triggering alarms for preemptive evacuation, Jaldon said.
Cirunay also reported 18 families made up of 55 individuals from Nabunturan town in Compostela Valley evacuated and another three families made up of 15 individuals from New Bataan town, also of Compostela Valley.
One family and five individuals from San Ignacio village in Manay town in Davao Oriental have evacuated to higher grounds due to rising floodwaters, Cirunay said, adding that OCD has not received flood reports from other provinces.
"’Yung report naman na may nasirang bahay, inanod ng baha somewhere in Toril, hindi totoo yun. There were people who conducted preemptive evacuation, pero bumalik na sila sa kani-kanilang mga bahay," Cirunay said.
Cirunay said they placed the region under blue alert status since December 31, which means the OCD in coordination with the local disaster risk reduction and management council will actively and closely monitor the entire region.