An unprecedented rise in the tide over the weekend that caused the seawaters to swell has displaced several families in various parts of Negros Oriental.

On Saturday and Sunday, huge waves crashed on the shorelines of the province, sending families scampering to safer ground even as authorities warned of a repeat activity in the coming days.

In Dumaguete City, reports reaching the City Social Welfare Office said that seawater poured into several homes in the coastal village of Tinago Sunday evening, with one house partially swept away.

Some of the families had to seek shelter the whole night at the nearby women’s center as water that entered their homes had risen to waist-deep, although no one was reported injured.

In Bindoy town, about 80 kilometers north of Dumaguete, a police report said nine families in the villages of Tinaugan and Malaga had to be evacuated immediately as their houses were destroyed by the crashing waves.

About 10 meters of the national highway in Malaga, Bindoy was damaged, while the storm surge also left a gaping hole, measuring about two meters in diameter, along the national highway in Lala-an, San Jose town.

Initial reports also said that three houses in Ajong, Sibulan town were washed away.  Some 21 families in Barangay Mag-abo, Amlan and another 17 families in Barangay Tapon Norte, San Jose, have also been affected.

Relief goods were distributed to these families by a national TV network even as Vice Gov. Jose Baldado, who visited San Jose yesterday morning, promised to coordinate with the provincial Social Welfare Office for possible relief assistance.

Euseber Siglos, barangay captain of Tapon Norte, meanwhile, asked government officials to find a relocation area for the families living along the coast.

He said they have never experienced such stormy weather in the past years, and this is a cause for concern, considering that San Jose is a mostly coastal town.

Baldado promised to discuss the matter with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in the province.

Army troops, led by Col. Cesar Yano, commander of the 302nd Infantry Brigade in Tanjay City, also rushed to Amlan and San Jose to provide assistance where needed.

Yano said the soldiers are on stand-by, especially in the evacuation of displaced families.

Dumaguete City Social Welfare Officer Marina Mendoza also visited Tinago Sunday night and yesterday morning and social workers and rescue groups are on call as the seawaters are starting to rise again.*JFP

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