BACOLOD City – At least 80 students of Generoso Villanueva Sr. National High School (GVNHS) in Barangay Granada were rescued by the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) after being stranded in their classrooms due to flooding on Wednesday afternoon, August 20.
According to Edward Ramirez, CDRRMO Chief Operations Officer, the office received reports around 4:30 p.m. that several students needed assistance as floodwaters inside the school had already reached waist-deep level.
A rescue truck was immediately dispatched to bring the stranded students safely home.
Bacolod City experienced several hours of heavy rains that day. Based on the weather advisory of the Department of Science and Technology–Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (DOST-PAGASA), the rains were caused by a low-pressure area (LPA) over Southeastern Luzon embedded along the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ).
Ramirez said floodwaters subsided after more than an hour, shortly after the rescue operation was completed.
The incident prompted barangay officials to initiate a cleanup of waterways and drainage systems, which were identified as the main cause of flooding in the school.
Meanwhile, a day earlier, on August 19, Oskar Cruz, officer-in-charge of PAGASA’s Hydrometeorology Division, presented to Mayor Greg Gasataya the agency’s community-based flood early warning system project.
Dr. Ana Maria Laarni Pornan, head of the CDRRMO, said the city government has allocated P12 million for the project, which aims to enhance preparedness in flood-prone areas.
On the same day, PAGASA successfully conducted a radio propagation field test for the warning system, with the participation of CDRRMO personnel. The test assessed the reliability of transmitting data signals via VHF from automated rain gauges, water level monitoring devices, and warning posts to the operation center.
Pornan said the city plans to install nine rain gauges in schools frequently affected by floods and seven water level monitoring devices on bridges.
The flood early warning system is designed to provide timely and accurate information to anticipate flooding, thereby improving community preparedness and disaster response.
Mayor Gasataya expressed full support for the initiative, stressing that it will significantly strengthen the city’s resilience against hydrometeorological hazards such as floods and typhoons./PN
