Retired cop drowns in Misamis flood

MANILA, Philippines - A retired police colonel died in a flash flood caused by heavy rains in Jimenez, Misamis Occidental, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said yesterday.

In a report, the council said Superintendent Timoteo Conol was washed away by floodwaters at the spillway in Pallilan River in Barangay Mialim, Jimenez town last Sunday.

Coast Guard personnel and local disaster management officials found Conol’s body in Barangay Sinara Bajo the following day.

NDRRMC executive director Benito Ramos said the flash flood, which hit Barangay Mialim Sunday night, was caused by continuous heavy rains.

Meanwhile, three families have been evacuated after a landslide occurred in Barangay Malayanan, San Fernando, Bukidnon last Monday.

Two of the families were evacuated to Sitio San Vicente, and the other one to Sitio Sto. Niño, both in Barangay Malayanan.  

The NDRRMC said the flash flood, the latest of six flash floods that hit Bukidnon in two days, damaged three houses. A total of seven people died in a series of landslides that has hit the province since Sunday.

The landslides were caused by the rainy weather that triggered soil erosion. Security forces, local workers, and Red Cross volunteers were still conducting search and rescue operations in the affected areas.  

Ramos admitted that they are facing difficulties in the search and retrieval operations “considering that the soil is soft and loose and (there’s a) possibility of another landslide.”

Meanwhile, the Department of Social Welfare and Development has activated its social welfare and development team to assist the families affected by the landslides in Bukidnon. 

Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said the team is closely coordinating with local officials and is assessing the situation to determine what type of assistance may be provided. – With Helen Flores