Philippines, Floods, landslides in Cagayan Valley

Floods continued to rise in the provinces of Isabela and Cagayan on Monday, submerging 500 low-lying villages due to monsoon rains in the areas on 5-7 November 2017. A flooded portion of Manaring Road, a major route to Tuguegarao City, along the Cagayan Valley Highway, also stalled traffic. In Cagayan, two houses were buried by mudslides on Sunday night at Sitio Dalupang in Barangay San Vicente in Santa Ana town. Cagayan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC) reported that 28,000 individuals were affected by flooding and landslides. In addition, 1,941 people have been evacuated, mostly from the low-lying areas in Tuguegarao City. In Cagayan, 14 overflow bridges and roads remained impassable due the swollen rivers and landslides. The Project Noah monitoring of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) reported that the Cagayan River‘ water level in Buntun Bridge has reached 10.28 meters. On 8 November 2017, at least 85 families or 425 persons are still staying in two evacuation centers in Cagayan, while 6,371 families or 29,568 persons are taking shelter with relatives or friends. According to the DSWD, the Cagayan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) has already downgraded the province‘ status from red to blue alert after the weather improved on Tuesday, November 7.