Another sinkhole found in Badian

Residents of Barangay Taytay, Badian town in southern Cebu have expressed concern after some of them discovered a large hole along the river in their barangay, prompting them to seek assistance from authorities.

One resident reportedly appeared before police yesterday morning informing them about the deep hole they noticed in the river banks in Sitio Toril, Barangay Taytay, said Police Officer 1 Rojie Alicaway of the Badian Police Station in a phone interview with THE FREEMAN yesterday.

Alicaway said, narrating the accounts from locals, that the hole was discovered last Tuesday (April 25) when the size of the hole was still as wide as the opening of a pail.

But when Alicaway and his team went to check the area yesterday morning, the diameter of the hole has enlarged to around two meters.

To determine the depth of the hole, Alicaway said they used a bamboo stick of about 20 meters but the stick did not even reach the bottom.

Residents are beginning to worry, Alicaway said, since they cross the river often and because some children enjoy swimming there.

Alicaway also said that they immediately coordinated with the Badian municipal government through the Office of the Mayor to inform them about the matter.

As an initial action, the town reportedly ordered cordoning the peripheries of the large hole for the safety of the people. The people had also erected a temporary wooden fence around the hole to prevent people from falling into it.

Alicaway said this event is not new to locals and that he has heard reports of sinkholes in the town that are even bigger than what he saw.

This occurrence may be an old story for some since the town has been known as a sinkhole-prone locality due to its soil composition, according to Mines and Geosciences Bureau in Central Visayas (MGB) -7.

MGB-7, for its part, is eyeing to schedule a visit to the area to conduct assessment.

MGB-7 Information Officer Marian Codilla said the agency is also waiting for the local government unit of Badian to submit a report about the matter.

She said the town of Badian is susceptible to the occurrence of sinkholes since the ground is mostly composed of limestone bedrock.