Iligan families evacuated as cracks in ground appear

Iligan City – Some 350 families in Barangay Suarez here were evacuated by authorities when cracks in the ground appeared following at least three days of continuous rains.

Disaster Coordinating team leader Armando Edrozo said calls were received Wednesday afternoon from residents of hillside Zone Saturn in Barangay Suarez this city, informing the office about cracks appearing on the ground.

The Disaster Coordinating team inspected the site and found that there was at least an estimated kilometer long segments of cracked ground in the said area.

Residents were evacuated to a nearby Philippine Army training camp (Camp Pintoy) for fear of landslide since the said hillside has a 35 degree slope.

According to a 2006 study of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau in Northern Mindanao, the soil in the said place is loose with some scattered boulders. Edrozo said that with more rains to come, the soil could loosen more and develop into landslide.

The local city government had ordered residents living in the area to relocate to safer places or to the evacuation centers set up for the victims of the recent flooding.

Local government officials now estimate that the total number of people affected by the flood have reached at least 15,000 and close to 3,000 of them were direct victims who either lost their houses and need to be relocated. The estimated cost of damage was placed at about P4 million, according to the City Social Welfare Department.     – Lino de la Cruz