FLOODS FORCE EVACUATION IN CAGAYAN

TUGUEGARAO CITY— A man died while 180 families were forced to move to higher ground as strong rains flooded low-lying and riverside villages in Cagayan province this week.

Construction worker Edgar Gabriel, 28, was found dead at a meat stall where he took shelter in Lasam town on Thursday.

Gabriel was apparently drunk and may have died from hypothermia (a fatal drop in body temperature due to exposure to a cold environment), police said.

On Friday, rains triggered floods that submerged lowlying villages in Ballesteros town, prompting families to evacuate.

The floods have been attributed to continuous rains starting Tuesday and to water released by Magat Dam in Isabela province.

The dam’s reservoir level reached 192.97 meters above sea level (masl). Its spilling level is 193 masl.

Task force

Members of the Task Force Lingkod CagayanQuick Response Team (TFLC-QRT) had been dispatched to rescue residents in the Ballesteros villages of San Juan, Nararagan and Cabayu villages, according to Bonifacio Cuarteros of the Cagayan Provincial Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office.

Low- lying villages in Tuguegarao City and the towns of Enrile, Tuao, Solana, Iguig, Amulung, Alcala, Baggao, Gattaran, Lal- lo, Lasam, Camalaniugan and Aparri were also flooded.

Flooded areas

Rains caused the rivers of Linao, Lower Abulug, Lower Pamplona, Cabicungan, Alinugay, Baua, Palawig and Taboan to swell, flooding low-lying areas in the towns of Claveria, Abulug, Pamplona, Allacapan and Gonzaga.

Cuarteros said overflow bridges were submerged, while rains washed out an irrigation canal in Lasam.

Landslides blocked the Baybayog-San Jose-BaggaoAbusag-Dalin-Sta. Margarita road network but it had since been opened when mud and rocks were cleared, a report from the Department of Public Works and Highways said.