4 days ago
Habagat, recent rains bring floods, affect fishers and farmers across PH
Several areas across the Philippines were impacted by the continuous rains over the weekend due to the southwest monsoon or Habagat and Tropical Cyclone Danas, bringing down prices of agricultural goods in northern Luzon, and causing floods in Mindanao.
Farmers in Benguet have been forced to harvest their goods earlier due to the rains, with market prices down as sellers are offering goods such as cabbage at giveaway prices instead of throwing them out.
'Kahapon talaga 'yung medyo may kalakihan. Dose ang bigay namin. Kapag tag-ulan kasi, medyo mabilis na ano 'yung mga gulay, na ma-harvest kasi masisira,' Gloria Calpito, a seller at the La Trinidad Trading Post, said in a report by Nico Waje on GMA's '24 Oras Weekend' on Sunday.
(Yesterday was really big. We sold at P12. During the rainy season, vegetables are harvested immediately because they go bad.)
Fisherfolk in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte are also feeling the effects of the bad weather conditions, as they have been forced to skip fishing activities and remain on the ground for the past few days due to the waves.
According to Ilocos Norte Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) representative Marcell Tabije, authorities are now coordinating to ensure that fisherfolk stay on land for the meantime.
'Pinaigting natin 'yung pagbabantay at pag-info dissemination sa mga fisherfolk natin na huwag munang pumalaot habang malakas 'yung alon,' he said in a separate report by Darlene Cay.
(We have intensified our surveillance and our info dissemination to the fisherfolk not to go at sea while the waves are strong.)
Streets in Mindanao, particularly in the Sarangani Province, were also flooded by the continuous rains, as irrigation canals spilled over, and floodwaters entered residences in Barangay Pangyan in Glan, and a chapel in Barangay Cross.
A river connected to the sea in Jose Abad Santos in Davao Occidental was also reported to have spilled over, forcing fishers and residents of the area to work hand in hand to bring boats back to the shore on Sunday morning.
The state weather bureau PAGASA expects tropical cyclone Danas, formerly named Bising, and the Habagat to continue to bring rains across the country. — Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas/BM, GMA Integrated News
