Blocked waterways, damaged bridges, and massive landslides prompted the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to inspect key localities in Negros, more than a week after Typhoon Tino battered the province with destructive floods.
Regional Executive Director Charlie Fabre said debris blocked rivers and bridges, which worsened flooding in La Carlota City, where two rivers converge.
The agency inspected Murcia town, La Carlota City, and La Castellana town, on Thursday, November 12 and continued on Friday in Canlaon City, Negros Oriental.
Fabre also reported multiple landslides around Mount Kanlaon.
He said that DENR will file formal complaints if inspectors find illegal logging. He noted that most of the trees in rivers had fallen due to landslides, not chainsaws, showing that natural erosion contributed heavily to the flooding.
4th District Representative Jeffrey P. Ferrer previously urged DENR to investigate debris from upland areas, saying that logs and timber were clogging rivers and bridges and worsening floods in nearby barangays.
Environmentalist Rustico “Rusty” Biñas earlier warned that widespread deforestation and weak disaster preparedness in Negros have weakened natural flood defenses.
Forests that once served as “natural sponge” now fail to prevent flash floods and landslides, leaving communities highly vulnerable when typhoons strike, he said.*
Reymund Titong is a Filipino journalist steadily building his voice in the field of news reporting, driven by a commitment to tell meaningful and relevant stories.
He serves as a correspondent for Rappler, maintains a personal blog on Medium, and is the communications officer of Hope Builders Organization Negros Island.