AUTHORITIES are stepping up their monitoring of various flood and landslide prone areas throughout the five provinces of the Caraga Region.
The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) and Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (RDRRMC) issued weather advisory and stepped up its monitoring on identified landslide and flood prone low lying areas in Caraga Region.
“Even if there is no storm warning, the rain brought by the ITCZ can create disruptions along the routes of commuters,” April Anne Sanchez, Information Officer II of OCD in Caraga, said.
Sanchez pointed out that they are monitoring the situation since the other day as it rained heavily on parts of the region.
“We are on 24 hours monitoring with all of our networks in the different towns and provinces. So far since yesterday when the rains started to pour, we haven’t received any untoward reports from the different Local Government Units (LGU) but we cannot be complacent and keep on checking with our networks,” Sanchez said.
Sanchez said they are heeding lessons learned when Tropical Storm Agaton hit the Caraga region.
“We’ve learned our lesson and we’ve prepared for several months, training various LGU’s and other stakeholders in how to react when scenarios get worst. We have a more stable network now compared before and this time the LGU’s are prepared in their monitoring and in responding to sudden changes when it arises,” Sanchez said.
Lolita Vinalay, chief meteorological officer of Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) in Butuan City, pointed out that the rains brought in by the ITCZ will not be that disruptive.
“The rains can be reach to heavy but it would not be pour that long, the duration would be short unless another LPA will develop that outside and affect the ITCZ. Yet we cannot discredit that some low lying areas in Caraga will suddenly be flooded but in a short duration,” Vinalay said.