THE recent flash floods that hit the northern part of Negros Occidental have left P20 million worth of damage and production losses to the province’s agriculture sector.
The Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) reported about P16.5 million worth of damages to agro-fishery of five localities including cities of Sagay, Cadiz, Victorias and Silay, and the town of E.B. Magalona.
The bulk of the amount is accounted for the rice sector, which incurred almost P11.6 million worth of damages and production losses.
The figure covers 1,263 affected farmers in 19 barangays with rice production areas totaling 669.65 hectares.
If per local government unit (LGU), Victorias City posted the highest amount of damage and losses at P5.2 million.
It was followed by E.B. Magalona with almost P4.3 million; Silay City - almost P1.7 million; Cadiz City - P302,381; and Sagay City - P52,575.
Thirty-two high-value crop farmers, meanwhile, in two barangays of Silay City with a total area of 4.2 hectares incurred P840,000 worth of production losses.
In terms of fishery, OPA also reported P4.1 million in damages to some fishpond areas, particularly those into bangus (milkfish) production.
The amount covers six fish producers in three barangays of E.B. Magalona with combined production areas of 54 hectares.
“Fingerlings, juveniles and marketable sizes of milkfish were totally washed out,” the reports stated.
A farmer in Silay City also incurred P20,000 worth of damage after his "tangkop" or shallow water fish water coral was destroyed, it added.
The flooding also affected the province’s livestock and poultry sector.
The Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) reported that animal raisers in 12 barangays of cities of Talisay and Victorias incurred almost P3.5 million worth of damage and losses.
Among the animals hit by the flood included free-range chicken, gamefowl, native chicken, duck, hog, piglet, goat and carabao, it added.
The flooding that greeted thousands of Negrenses on New Year’s day was caused by heavy rains and high tide.
It also affected over 15,000 families in the northern part of the province, with hundreds of them left homeless.