BACOLOD City Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez has ordered the Task Force Baha to convene Thursday, July 27, to make an assessment of the recent floods that hit various barangays in the city on July 25.
Benitez said the task force should determine the cause and the areas affected by floods.
He said he also ordered the City Engineer’s Office to give their solution to the affected areas.
“We should find a solution in the flood-prone areas,” he added.
The task force was headed by the city’s engineering office, the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (DRRMO), Department of Social Services and Development (DSSD) among others.
Benitez noted that based on the report of the DRRMO, 28 inches of rain accumulated in the span of three hours along with the high tide on Tuesday, July 25.
So, what we can do about it? the mayor asked.
“Let’s be prepared, even if it is 40 or 50 inches of rain that will accumulate within three hours or with high tide, we need to make sure that we have enough capacity of our drainages,” Benitez said.
He said the city should prepare for any eventualities.
DRRMO records showed that a total of 1,312 families composed of 4,472 individuals were evacuated in various barangays due to flooding on Tuesday.
Of the 61 barangays, 18 barangays have been affected by floods and the city utilized a total of 24 evacuation centers.
Affected barangays include Barangays 1, 2, 27, 31,35, 36, 39, 40, 41, Pahanocoy, Taculing, Sum-ag, Singcang-Airport, Mansilingan, Tangub, Cabug, Pta.Taytay, and Alijis.
Benitez said the affected residents already returned to their homes and they provided them with assistance such as food supplies.
He said the city appropriated 500 sacks of rice for the affected families and they will purchase more supplies to help the flood victims.*