P50M allotted for flood victims

THE Davao City Government has allocated P50 million as financial assistance to four highly affected villages of the city after they were declared under state of calamity due to the flashfloods brought about by the localized thunderstorm on Wednesday evening, August 28.

On Thursday afternoon, the 19th City Council approved the request of the City Social Services and Development Office (CSSDO) to release the fund that will be used for relief operations, reconstruction, rehabilitation, and other basic services in the affected areas.

According to the approved resolution, the amount will be taken from the 30-percent Quick Response Fund (QRF) out of the five-percent Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund (DRRMF) of the city for Calendar Year 2019.

The following breakdown include: financial assistance worth P35,590,000; food assistance worth P3,559,000; non-food assistance worth P3,559,000; medicines and medical supplies worth P3,559,000; and other incidental expenses worth P3,733,000.

CSSDO assistant department head Marilyn Agonia said the assistance will be distributed to the affected families soonest once the master list will be finished.

Wednesday flood

According to the CSSDO, as of 6 a.m. of August 29, a total of 3,559 families or a total of 17,759 individuals were affected from last night’s flooding.

City Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Office (CDDRMO) operations officer Rodrigo Bustillo said on Thursday during the iSpeak media forum at the City Hall of Davao that they have yet to confirm five individuals who were initially reported to have been swept away by the current during the flood.

The CDDRMO recommended for the declaration of a state of calamity to the following villages: Los Amigos and Tugbok Proper of Tugbok District; Barangay Talomo of Talomo District; and Barangay Wangan of Calinan District.

Catalunan Pequeño, Ulas, Bangkal, and Matina Aplaya also experienced flood Thursday.

Bustillo said they already issued early warning advisories Thursday.

He said the villages were already informed of a possible flooding around 3 p.m. While a pre-emptive evacuation was issued in the affected villages around 4:30 p.m., this time alerting the sirens within the area. While forced evacuation was imposed around 5:30 p.m.

Despite the early information dissemination for pending hazards, Bustillo said most of the residents did not evacuate because some said they are already used to the rising water levels.

However, he said last night’s flood was “one of the massive flooding within the river”, based on his personal experience.

Flood victim

Norma Omblero, 63, was alone outside her house near their balcony in Phase 3, NHA Bangkal, Davao City looking at their wet things scattered around the entrance after their area was flooded on Wednesday evening triggered by the heavy downpour.

The elderly woman was sitting alone in their house while waiting for her relative coming from Tagum to help her clean the muddy house. Her things, the clothes of her children, and her late husband were not spared. Because of her age, she couldn’t clean her house alone due to limited physical capacity.

It was around 6:30 p.m. on August 28 when it started raining, she thought it was just an ordinary rain. Minutes later, the water started entering their house. She thought that they were just safe inside their home. However, the water level slowly rose and reached their window, they began to panic and eventually decided to evacuate.

They did not bring anything with them when they transferred to their neighbor’s house, which has a second floor, for safety. Their beds, foam, pillows, among others, were already floating inside their house when they left it. They ensured the safety of the 11-month-old baby and the child’s stuff.

It was only at around 4 a.m. on Thursday when the water subsided and they were able to return home. Upon entering their house, they were greeted with muddy floors and their things scattered in different areas of the house.

Instead of feeling sad, she chose to be positive because they were safe. She just laughed off the thought that she only has two months left to fully pay her refrigerator that was damaged by the flood.

Omblero said this was not the first time that they experienced flooding. Since they moved in NHA Bangkal in 2001, it was only in 2011 when they suffered a serious flash flood.

As of noon Thursday, electricity and water had not returned. However, the Davao City Water District provided water rations near their house.