MALAYBALAY CITY (BukidnonNews.net/ 07 July 2025)—Seven farm villages in the city that had been hit by the June 25 floods were placed under “state of calamity” last Friday, July 4.
This was recommended by the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council to the City Council following their assessment last week. Mayor Warren Jay Pabillaran then approved the City Council’s resolution to fast-track relief operations and assistance to the following flood-stricken barangays: Sto. Niño, Managok, Violeta, Simaya, Sinanglanan, San Martin, and Apo Macote.
Affected: 2,000 families, 900-hectare crops, 22 million-peso loss
The local government usually allocates at least 5 percent of the annual budget for the Calamity Fund.
According to Mayor Pabillaran, 41 percent of agricultural livelihood in these communities was affected by the floods. “Ganina gi-discuss gyud gikan sa Engineering, Agriculture, Irrigation, CSWD, sa City Health Office nato, sa Planning nato, sa City Vet nato,” he said. “Tanan damage jud kay daghan ang naapektuhan.”
(We discussed this with several City government offices such as Engineering, Agriculture, Irrigation, Social Welfare and Development, Health, Planning, Veterinary…The damage has affected so many people.)
Engr. Richard Leono, City Agriculturist, said the floods caused significant damage in over 900 hectares of crops, 760 hectares of which were rice farms and 140 hectares were corn fields.
“Many farmers lost their standing crops just weeks after planting, making the impact even more devastating,” Engr. Leono said, adding that they’ve coordinated with the Department of Agriculture regional office to replace the seeds.
“We are closely coordinating with both local and national government agencies to fast-track release of assistance,” he said. “Our priority is to provide immediate support to the 600 affected farmers and help them recover as quickly as possible.”
Aside from the farmers, an estimated 2,000 families were also affected, according to a report by the Philippine Information Agency Bukidnon. Several of these families had been evacuated. Total loss was estimated to be Php 22 million.
Active citizen participation in crisis
The CDRRMC members convened at the Veranda Hotel in Casisang and presented the rapid damage and needs assessment report and discussed urgent recovery measures. Mayor Pabillaran also called for continued public trust and active citizen participation in times of crises.
Arian Johnson Caga-anan, search and warning division head of CDRRMO Malaybalay, had called on the barangay response units to remain on high alert to prepare for worsening weather conditions.
“All barangay response teams are expected to stay on standby and be ready to act as first responders in the event of emergencies such as flooding, landslides, or other weather-related incidents,” Caga-anan said. “We continue to monitor the situation closely…”
Based on the latest Pagasa weather advisory, while the Typhoon Bising is edging out north of Batanes, the Southwest monsoons are causing cloudy skies, scattered rains, and thunderstorms in many parts of the country, especially in the north.