BACOLOD CITY – A man died, while hundreds of houses were destroyed and damaged, in the Friday massive flooding that hit many parts of northern Negros Occidental.

Silay City Mayor Mark Golez confirmed on Saturday that 43-year-old Marvito Lumanog in Barangay Guimbalaon was found dead on Saturday morning, after he was trapped inside his house when it collapsed due to soil erosion.

“Sad to say, we have one casualty,” the mayor added.

The City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) reported it as a minor landslide. Lumanog’s house was made of light materials, Golez said.

Meanwhile, 132 houses were initially reported to have been destroyed, while 71 houses were damaged in the flashfloods caused by torrential rains since Friday morning.

In Silay City, 17 houses were destroyed and 119 were damaged, while in Talisay City, 13 were destroyed and 50 were damaged.

Two damaged houses were also reported each in the cities of Cadiz and Sagay. 

The flashfloods affected more than 8,000 families composed of more than 30,000 individuals in 58 barangays in the cities of Talisay, Silay, Victorias, Cadiz, and Sagay, and the towns of E.B. Magalona and Manapla.

Most of the evacuees already returned to their houses while some are still in the villages’ evacuation centers.

The provincial government has already sent equipment to the affected localities to help them in the dredging of waterways to prevent the same incident.

It was the second incidence of flashfloods to happened this month in the northern part of the province.

Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson has urged local government units (LGUs) to have their own dredgers to address similar incidents.