Strong winds damage houses in Tacurong

TACURONG CITY, Philippines — Strong winds and heavy rain damaged more than 40 houses in the capital of Sultan Kudarat on Tuesday afternoon.

Emergency workers from the city government were still clearing streets on Wednesday morning of debris and trees felled by the strong winds, according to the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

Rodrigo Jamorabon, a senior CDRRMC official, said they will continue their clearing and relief operations in affected areas in the next two days.

The city government of Tacurong is now attending to the needs of displaced residents.

Strong winds also battered several barangays in nearby President Quirino town in Sultan Kudarat .

“The rains softened the top soil of farms dried by lack of rainfall but the strong winds that came along destroyed so many houses and crops,” said Melvyn Avanceña Aradanas, a senior staff of a member of the Bangsamoro Transition Commission.

Aradanas said parts of President Quirino, an immediate neighbor of Tacurong City, were also devastated by strong winds.

“A part of my family’s sugarcane farm was flattened by winds," Aradanas said.

He said municipal officials in President Qurino and the CDRRMC in Tacurong City are now attending to the needs of the affected villagers.