Leyte floods 5-year-old boy drowns, thousands evacuated

TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines  –- A 5-year-old boy in Barangay Los Martires of Dagami town drowned in the overflowed river at San Benito bridge that also caused the evacuation of 850 families from 65 barangays.

The floods, caused by intermittent rains brought about by the low pressure area and tail end of a cold front, has affected thousands of families other towns of Leyte province, according to the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

RDRRMC chairman and Office of Civil Defense-8 director Rey Gozon said the town of Javier accounted for a total of 1,081 families who were rescued from nine barangays of Batog, Kalsada, Inayopan, Picas, Kasulongan, Bantay, Karanhug, Abuyugay and Malitbogay.

In the adjacent town of Abuyog, around 697 families were evacuated from its 14 barangays, namely, Poblacion 1 to 9, Pagsangan, Can-apurong, Udyungan, Burubudan and Canmarating.

In Palo town, next to this city, 600 families were evacuated from five barangays due to flooding. Relief operations there were still going on as of press time.

Other towns in Leyte that were also flooded were Mayorga, Santa Fe, Baybay, MacArthur, Tolosa and Julita.

Gozon cited the cooperation and support of the national government agencies, the local disaster risk reduction and management councils and the 8th Infantry Division in helping the affected families. —(FREEMAN)