ReliefWeb

Torrential rain since February 4 has claimed 23 lives and have left half a million people homeless. The heavy rains caused serious flooding in four major provinces in the Southern island of Mindanao. Flood waters in some places rose to over 10 feet, cutting off major centres and towns. Landslides and collapsed bridges have compounded the disaster. The government has declared a state of emergency, blaming indiscriminate logging and loss of forest cover as a main factor in causing the flood. The worst affected provinces are: Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur. All the 14 towns of Agusan del Sur are under water, displacing over 170,000 people. The National Disaster Co-ordinating Council estimates the total damage at USD 3.2 million. (IFRC, 10 Feb 1999)

The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Manila reported that, according to a Progress Report issued by the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) on 25 February, flash floods occurred along the Lampan river on 21 February. The floods were caused by continuous rains in the province of Lanao del Norte in Mindanao. 575 families, or 2,609 persons, were affected in the towns of Kauswagan, Linamon and Bacolod. The floods left a death toll of 13 people, with 21 people missing and 79 injured. In addition, 203 houses were totally destroyed and 167 were partially damaged. (OCHA, 26 Feb 1999)