• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Damage to crops, livestock, and fisheries in Negros Occidental, due to the inclement weather triggered by Tropical Storm Kristine, further increased to almost P6 million, according to reports from the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist and Provincial Veterinary Office.
Provincial Agriculturist officer-in-charge Teena Pineda, in her report to Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson, dated October 25, said that rice crops sustained damage valued at P3,221,433.90, while fisheries incurred damages of P2,281,730.
Provincial Veterinarian Placeda Lemana also reported yesterday that livestock damage was pegged at P400,000, based on reports of the five local government units in the 4th district of Negros Occidental.
Majority of those that died are broilers in Barangay San Isidro, Pontevedra, while other LGUs in the district, such as La Carlota, Bago, Pulupandan, and Valladolid, also reported deaths of farm animals in their respective areas, Lemana said.
The animals died due to hypothermia and drowning, she added.
On the other hand, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) reported that 96 houses in the province were destroyed, while 2,898 others were partially damaged.
Initial damage to infrastructure was reported at P150,000 in Don Salvador Benedicto, where a school building was partially damaged.*
