THE City Government of Cadiz is set to declare a state of calamity after hundreds of houses and pump boats in the northern Negros city were damaged due to strong winds and storm surges over the weekend.
Cadiz is among the localities in Negros Occidental hit by huge waves. Others are Victorias City and the towns of Manapla and E.B. Magalona.
The estimated worth of damage among the four local government units is about P5 million.
Cadiz City Mayor Patrick Escalante said he will recommend to the City Council today the declaration of state of calamity so they could utilize the Quick Response Fund intended for the affected residents.
The disaster has affected 122 families in the 11 coastal barangays, namely Cadiz Viejo, Banquerohan, Sicaba, Daga, Tiglawigan, Zone 1, Zone 2, Zone 3, Zone 4, Zone 5 and Zone 6.
Escalante said the funds will be allocated for the repair of pump boats as it has affected the livelihood of the residents.
The strong winds also destroyed 12 houses and damaged 110 others.
It also destroyed 42 pump boats and damaged 57 others. Also damaged were 18 “tangkops” and four “kamaligs.”
Escalante said the estimated worth of damage in Cadiz has been pegged at P1.5 to P2 million.
He added that residents whose houses were destroyed have started to relocate to Barangay Tiglawigan.
“We have houses there from the National Housing Authority,” he said.
For Victorias, Mayor Francis Palanca said that 10 houses were destroyed while 68 others were damaged in one barangay, affecting 68 families.
Also damaged were 11 pump boats.
Palanca said the assessment of the damage is still ongoing.
In Manapla, 59 families were affected in five barangays, which also destroyed 10 houses and damaged 49 others, records of the Provincial Social Development Office showed.
A total of 141 pump boats were also damaged, records showed.
The damage in the town was estimated at P2.98 million.
High tide and strong winds also destroyed three houses and damaged 50 houses in four barangays, including Pasil, Mantaangan, Batea, Gahit, in E.B. Magalona town.
It also destroyed and damaged 37 pump boats and 23 “tangkops.”
Zeaphard Gerhart Caelian, head of Provincial Disaster Management Program Division, said it is the prerogative of the local government unit to declare a state of calamity.
He said that among the parameters to be considered in declaring a state of calamity include: 20 percent of the population was affected and that 40 percent of their livelihood was destroyed.
Caelian added that affected residents have already returned to their homes after the waters subsided.