• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The city of San Carlos in Negros Occidental is now under a state of calamity.
The declaration placing San Carlos City under a state of calamity was recommended by the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, chaired by Mayor Renato Gustilo, which was concurred by the Sangguniang Panlungsod, during its special session on May 6.
Based on reports of the City Agriculture Office, damage to crops, brought about by drought is pegged at P17,681,328.50, affecting 518 farmers, tilling 375 hectares of land.
Kabankalan City and San Enrique town in Negros Occidental have also placed their respective local government units under a state of calamity.
While still going through the ongoing drought that has wreaked havoc on agricultural crops, with the damage valued at more than P214 million, as of May 3, the provincial government is already bracing for the rainy season, which starts next month.
The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) expects a 62 percent chance of the La Niña phenomenon developing from June to August this year.
“I am hoping that there will be rain, but no typhoons,” Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson earlier said.
Expect isolated thunderstorms across Western Visayas, as the period of intense heat and high temperatures is over, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration disclosed.*
