7 dead in Cagayan de Oro, Misamis Oriental floods

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines (UPDATED) – Torrential rains left at least 7 people killed in Misamis Oriental and in this city, authorities said on Tuesday, January 17.

Fernando Dy,  Misamis Oriental Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) officer-in-charge, said 3 of the 4 killed in Misamis Oriental were children. He identified the fatalities in the province as follows:

• Jaime Chan, 3, Gingoog City
• CJ Lapuz, 7, Magsaysay town
• Kian Montecino, 10, Opol town
• Nilo Quiloman, 54, Gingoog City

Dy said one person – Abel Uano of Medina town – was reported missing.

The Misamis Oriental PDRRMO said 1,654 families or 6,827 persons had been displaced by the flood.

“Of the province’s 23 towns and 2 cities, 14 were affected by swelled waterways with unpassable roads and bridges,” Dy added.

Misamis Oriental Governor Yevgeny Emano said that Gingoog City is the hardest hit area in the province in terms of flooding and Manticao town in terms of landslides.

“There was a preemptive evacuation in Gingoog City and Lugait town declared a state of calamity for massive damage it sustained due to the heavy rain,” Emano added.

In Gingoog City, 421 families were evacuated, most of them living in Barangays Lunao and Agay-ayan.

The City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) said 3 people were killed in Cagayan de Oro – a certain Renny Boy Cabido and two still unidentified men.

Police Senior Superintendent Danildo Tumanda, Police Regional Public Safety Battalion director, said one unidentified casualty was found along the Cagayan de Oro River on Tuesday morning.

“It appeared that he was fishing along the riverbanks and that he died and his body was recovered,” Tumanda said.

The third casualty was a 70-year-old man who tried to return to his home in Gokingville on Monday night, by swimming, but went missing. His body was recovered Tuesday afternoon, according to CDRRMO head Allan Porcadilla.

A total of 1,345 families or 6,625 persons had been evacuated and housed in 19 evacuation centers across the city.

The city council declared Cagayan de Oro under a state of calamity before dawn Tuesday.

There are road clearing operations along the national highway. At the Lim Ket Kai Center and the University of Science and Technology in Southern Philippines where water reached neck level, the Department of Public Works and Highways began to remove mud left by the ebbing floodwaters.

The city social welfare department mobilized food distribution for evacuees and affected communities. Private individuals also began an initiative to help the flood victims.

State weather bureau PAGASA had forecast more rains in the area on Tuesday. – Rappler.com