BAGUIO CITY, Aug. 1 – Three national roads in the Cordillera remain closed to vehicular traffic as of 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, the Office of the Civil Defense Cordillera (OCD-CAR) said in its recent release at 7:00 p.m.
Frances Ivy Carasi, OCD-CAR information officer said there are also several roads which are passable one-way only due to landslides.
The closed roads include the Baay bridge and Manichel bridge along the Abra-Cervantes road in Abra which are still ongoing rehabilitation after they were damaged during Typhoon “Lawin” in 2016.
One section in Shilan-Beckel road which was closed due to mudflow is still being cleared with the help of a private loader and one dump truck aside from the Acop-Kapangan-Kibungan-Bakun road section in Tabbac, Kibungan due to landslide.
In Kalinga, the Tabuk-Banaue at Dumanay Tanudan section is still under rehabilitation and is expected to be opened on August 11. The Talubin-Barlig-Natonin- Paracelis road junction is closed as the Balabag temporary bridge there is also on-going rehabilitation and will be opened on August 10. Both roads were damaged during Typhoon “Lawin”.
Several other road sections in the different provinces are only passable one-way including the Baguio City limit-Sto. Tomas Road section due to an eroded shoulder, two sections of the Shilan-Beckel road due to road slip, Acop-Kibungan road due to landslide, the Tawang-Ambiong road section due to a road slip, four sections of the Acop-Kapangan-Kibungan Bakun road due to landslides, the Banaue-Hungduan-Benguet boundary road at Boklawan Hungduan section due to soil and rock collapse, and the Baguio-Bontoc road with three sections due to landslide.
Carasi said that Kennon Road is open to light vehicles but the Cordillera Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (CDRRMC) is advising motorists to take alternate routes due to threats of landslides.
Carasi also reported that there were 11 partially and four totally damaged houses in Benguet, Baguio and Mountain Province affecting 236 families or 913 persons.
A total of 127 families or 420 persons have been evacuated to safer grounds or have relocated to relatives’ houses for safety.
“Power has been restored in 93.8 percent of the Barangays in Baguio; 77.14 percent in Benguet and 96 percent in Abra,” she added.
Hiking at Mt. Pulag and Mt. Purgatory are still suspended.
The whole of the Cordillera region had been experiencing heavy downpour for over a week now due to monsoon rains enhanced by typhoons “Gorio “ and “Huaning” the past days.
Carasi assured that all disaster risk management councils in the region are continuously monitoring incidents in their respective areas as well as advising the public to take the necessary precautionary measures for their safety. **Liza T. Agoot/ PNA
