Ineng’s heavy rains trigger landslides

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines  — Continuous downpour brought by typhoon Ineng these past few days have triggered landslides at four sitios in Hinobaan town, Negros Occidental.

Hinobaan Mayor Ernesto Estrao said the highway along the four sitios—Mauti, Spur 4, Spur 6 and Malindog—of Barangay Damutan was impassable. “Four-wheel vehicles can’t go through, only motorcycles can pass the road,” he said.

Estrao said the highway, connecting other localities in Hinobaan and neighboring Candoni town, was “cut in half” because of the landslides, which toppled trees and terrains from the mountains.

The provincial government dispatched heavy equipment to the affected area, and clearing operations have been started, but bad weather conditions hampered the works, said the mayor.

Estrao further said those who need to pass through Barangay Damutan should take an alternative route at sitio Maglinao, which is connected to Basay town in Negros Oriental. He then appealed to his constituents, living near the coastline and in the mountains to be on alert for possible floods and landslides and evacuate if the weather worsens.

Meanwhile, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council announced that Negros Occidental was among the 33 provinces in the country that are prone to floods and landslides due to heavy rains caused by Ineng.

NDRRMC said the warning was based on the volume of rains and the expected amount of rainfall. Besides Negros Oriental, other provinces in the list were Aklan, Antique, Capiz and Iloilo, all in Western Visayas, it added. (FREEMAN)