Parts of Mindanao placed under flood, landslide alert due to trough of LPA

PARTS of the southern Philippine island of Mindanao have been placed under alert for flooding and landslides due to rains brought by the trough of a low pressure area (LPA), according to state weather bureau PAGASA.

In its Tuesday weather bulletin, PAGASA said the LPA is outside the Philippine area but will bring moderate to heavy rains in the regions of Zamboanga Peninsula, Davao, and Soccsksargen.

The local government of Dipolog City, capital of Zamboanga del Norte province, suspended classes in all levels on Tuesday due to continuous downpour.

Light to moderate rains were also expected over the rest of Mindanao and the Visayas in the central part of the country, PAGASA said.

“Under these conditions, flooding and rain-induced landslides are possible,” the agency said, especially in high-risk areas and those that have seen “significant” rainfall in the past weeks.

Several parts of Mindanao were affected by flooding and landslides in January, triggered by continuous rains brought by LPAs, shear line, and localized thunderstorms.

“Although no tropical cyclone entered inside the Philippine Area of Responsibility during the month, several areas in Mindanao incurred damages due to the aforementioned weather systems,” PAGASA said in its climate assessment for January.

Aside from Mindanao, unusual rains last month poured into 14 of the 17 regions in the country, affecting over 2.1 million people, based on the last related monitoring report of the national disaster management agency dated Feb. 3.

There were 45 reported deaths, with 20 confirmed and 25 still up for validation. Another seven were missing while 11 were injured.

Cost of damage to infrastructure — mostly roads, schools, and flood control structures — was estimated at almost P522 million, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council’s (NDRRMC) report.

Damage to agriculture reached P1.135 billion, with more than 47,000 farmers and fisherfolk affected, NDRRMC said. — MSJ