South Cotabato now under state of calamity due to El Niño

Source: MindaNews

KORONADAL CITY (MindaNews / 26 April) - The Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) of South Cotabato placed the province under a state of calamity Friday morning due to the dry spell triggered by the El Niño phenomenon, which caused agricultural losses worth P201.9 million so far.

Board Member Junette Hurtado, who presided over the special SP session, said the attending provincial legislative members unanimously approved the measure declaring a state of calamity in the province.

Around 1 p.m., or over an hour after the SP placed the province under calamity state due to El Niño, a brief rainfall poured in this city, the first since March.

The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (PDRRMO) proposed a budget of at least P25 million to help those affected by the dry spell across the province, including farmers.

Rolly Doane Aquino, PDRRMO - South Cotabato officer-in-charge, said that at least five of the 11 localities in the province have been hit hard by El Niño.

The worst-hit areas so far are the farming towns Banga, Norala, Surallah, Tantangan and Tboli, he said.

South Cotabato is also composed of the towns of Tampakan, Tupi, Polomolok, Sto. Nino, Lake Sebu and Koronadal City, the provincial capital and seat of government of Region 12.

So far, the local government units (LGUs) that declared a state of calamity are Banga, Surallah and T'boli.

"Even if the other LGUs in the province have not declared a state of calamity, they can utilize their quick response funds to address the impact of El Niño in their localities because the provincial government has already placed the entire province under a calamity state," Aquino said during the special session.

Aquino said preliminary data they gathered indicate the El Niño caused damage worth P201.9 million to crops, livestock and infrastructure.

At least 2,767 farmers in the province have been affected so far by the El Nino, data from the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist said.

In Tboli town, Vice Mayor Ronie dela Peña said the estimated damage caused by the drought to agriculture reached P62.3 million as of April 17.

In Surallah, Mayor Pedro Matinong said the El Nino destroyed agricultural crops and inland fisheries worth P71.8 million.

In their town, 1,178 farmers with 999 hectares of land were affected by the dry spell, Matinong said.

Last Wednesday, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council convened and agreed to recommend to the SP to place the province under a state of calamity due to the El Niño phenomenon, which caused prolonged drought, water shortages and crop failures in parts of the province.

El Niño is a result of the warming of ocean surface in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean, which reduces rainfall incidence in the region. (Bong S. Sarmiento / MindaNews)