Authorities continue to evacuate residents of 2 towns in Agusan Del Sur

Authorities continue to evacuate residents of 2 towns in Agusan Del Sur (Photo by Ronald Galope Barniso at English Wikipedia [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY-SA 4.0)

MANILA—As of 6 a.m. Friday, military and police units are still conducting pre-emptive evacuation in La Paz and Loreto towns in Agusan Del Sur which are being threatened by flooding with the swelling of Agusan River due continuous rains since Monday.

“Joint 26th Infantry Battalion and Agusan Del Sur Provincial Police Office are still conducting pre-emptive evacuation in Lapaz and Loreto areas,” Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesperson Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla.

Padilla said the move is more of a safety and precautionary measure as water levels in the nearby Agusan River has now dropped to 3.1 meters compared to the 3. 8 meters Thursday 7: 30 p.m.

Padilla said military and other disaster response units in Agusan Del Norte and Agusan Del Sur are still on red alert status despite the calming of the weather.

The 23rd Infantry Battalion’s disaster risk response operations unit is still on stand-by as of this posting.

One male in Sibagat, Agusan Del Sur was reported missing, he added.

“Military units in the area are still monitoring the situation as of this time,” Padilla disclosed.