LOS BAÑOS, Laguna - Most of the lakeshore towns in Laguna were flooded due to the heavy rains brought by storm Ondoy. But unknown to many, the rural town of Sta. Maria, at the northernmost part of Laguna, was also badly hit.
In a text message Wednesday, Sta. Maria Mayor Josie Cuento said this was the first time that flooding happened in their place.
She said water from the mountains actually rose up to 10 feet and there were landslides in all the 25 barangay (villages). Residents ended up climbing and staying on their rooftops.
The water subsided after two days but she said they still lacked relief goods.
Cuento said their main problem was rehabilitating schools and homes. Classes in some schools are still suspended as residents clean up the buildings filled with mud.
A report from the Office of the Municipal Social Welfare and Development noted that 4,550 individuals (1,260 families) were directly affected by flooding, 58 families completely lost their homes, and 1,055 families had partially damaged houses.
One died when a landslide hit Sitio Mindanao, Tungkod village.
Sta. Maria is a 4th class municipality which is the third largest town in terms of land area but has a small population of more than 26,000.
A team of researchers from the Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau held an ocular assessment, documentation and interview with affected families in the town last Oct. 1 and found that "the damage caused by the flood and flash flood in the areas was of high degree."
In the team's report, a copy of which was furnished the Inquirer, Dr. Aurora Jose, head of the research team, noted that water reached a height of four to six feet during the typhoon.
She said irrigation canals were silted and rice farmlands were covered by mud flows and silted along the roads.
The researchers also observed that bridges were slightly damaged and two schools were covered by water and soil.
Even before typhoon Ondoy hit, Jose's research team had already identified the high probability of flooding in the town, where the Sta. Maria watershed is located.
Last August, the team completed a one-year study, "Community's Vulnerability Assessment to Environment Changes in the Watershed of Sta. Maria, Laguna," which was conducted in 25 villages.
Researchers observed that "the watershed's landscape had changed" because much of the vegetation on mountain slopes was gone.
Rain-induced landslides, flash floods or flooding due to the rapid rise and flow of the Sta. Maria river and streams have become highly probable.
Jose said her administration would do a follow-up study of the municipality’s vulnerabilities during weather disturbances to improve their preparations for future disasters.
"This project is designed to complement existing government efforts in disaster management and capacitate people’s organizations in managing hazards," she said in the report.
"This project will involve an empowering process of capacity building and will come up with an action plan on how to organize community-based disaster management," she stated in the report.
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
