Flood displaces 10,000 in Mamasapano

MA'HAD PIMSALAKAN ASSAR IE AL ISLAMIE INC.

COTABATO CITY – At least ten thousand individuals from 2,000 families in eight villages of Mamasapano town in Maguindanao del Sur have been affected by widespread flooding caused by heavy downpour that occurred since Tuesday.

Vincent Cuales, the head for Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) of Mamasapano, told the Inquirer on Thursday that most of those affected families opted to stay home, with only ten percent of them had so far evacuated to safer grounds.

“Most of the affected families did not leave home but others who took refuge in evacuation centers can go back to their respective homes once flood waters subside,” Cuales said.

He said the continuous downpour in the area since Tuesday led to the swelling of South Cotabato’s Allah River, which overflowed to nearby towns in the adjoining Maguindanao del Sur, including the Mamasapano villages of Tuka, Libutan, Dabenayan, Bagumbong, Liab, Pidsandawan, Pembalakan and Sapakan.

Cuales also said an estimated 80 hectares of rice fields, cornfields and vegetable gardens in the town were also affected and that most of the crops had been damaged due to prolonged exposure to water.

The extent of the damage was still being determined, as the MDRRMO was still continuing its assessment and monitoring of affected barangays, said Cuales.

Cuales urged town residents, especially those living near riverbanks and marshlands, to remain vigilant and alert as floods continued to affect their localities.