Kidapawan flash floods affect 270 families

KIDAPAWAN CITY
(Sept. 12/NDBC) – About 270 families were affected by extra quick flash floods
that hit eight villages here Thursday night following an hour long heavy
downpour.

Nuangan river
overflowed and inundated all the villages on its path,” Psalmer Bernalte, city
chief of disaster risk reduction management council told DXND Radyo Bida
Kidapawan.

He said the
rainfall was unusual that the city Call 911, Kidapawan City’s emergency response
unit, recorded a 40 mm per hour rainfall beginning at 8 p.m.

Bernalte
described it as dangerous flood category.”

The flash
floods was so quick that it caught people unprepared,” Raul Gratuito, chief
disc jockey of DXDM-Happy FM said. Kung gaano kabilis bumaha, ganon din
kabilis humupa ang tubig,” he added.

When water
level at Nuangan river and the creeks connected to it started to rise, Call 911,
which celebrated its first year anniversary Thursday, was rained with phone
calls and call for help.

Bernalte said
most of the displaced families who spent the night at the city gymnasium have
returned home.

He said the city
LGU will put up a community kitchen in affected villages because most of the
victims had damaged kitchen area with their utensils gone.

Flood victims said
the upstream portion of Nuangan river was undergoing riprapping and could have
failedto hold on rising volume of water that it overflowed. Naay
gi-repair sa Nungan river, naghimo sila og mga canal, asa man na gikan na, nganong
paadto ma na diri sa among mga balay. Ambot nganong wala nila nakita na, karon
lutaw na kayo mi) There were canals created leading toward residential areas,
we do not know why they did not anticipate this to happen when heavy downpour
occurs, now we are under water),” the visibly irateTina Mahinay, a flood victim,
said. (NDBC)