At least four sinkholes have formed in Barangay Hagtu, Mabinay town in Negros Oriental following what was believed to be an earthquake of still unknown strength having occurred in the area early Wednesday.
No casualties have been reported so far but at least 22 households stand to be affected should the sinkholes grow bigger in size with the continuous rains, the town mayor said. A pre-emptive evacuation is in the offing if warranted, he added.
Mabinay Mayor Ernesto “Jango” Uy in a phone interview Thursday afternoon disclosed that the local government unit is keeping a close watch of the sinkholes located near the riverbed of the Malaiba River in Barangay Hagtu as heavy rains continue to inundate the upland town.
Hagtu is the last village in Negros Oriental with Kabankalan, Negros Occidental situated just about 50 meters from the bridge, said the mayor.
According to Mayor Uy, he received a phone call from Hagtu village officials that five hours after ground shaking was felt around 3 a.m. Wednesday, three sinkholes were first observed at the Malaiba River vicinity.
There was no immediate available data from the local Philippine Institute of Volcanology & Seismology seismic station in Sibulan, Negros Oriental, headed by Engr. Jose Molas, on the supposed earthquake that jolted Mabinay.
Engr. Molas could not be reached via mobile phone for comment.
Officials maintained vigilance since Wednesday as the size of the sinkholes were said to be increasing and by Thursday, a fourth sinkhole had formed, Uy said.
What added to the concern of officials and residents in Mabinay was that the river water no longer flowed downstream in its natural course but went into the sinkholes, the mayor added.
All four sinkhole formations are situated close to each other, with the biggest estimated to measure about eight inches in diameter while the others between two to three meters in diameter each, Mayor Uy disclosed.
The area where the sinkholes were found is about 60 meters away from the bridge that connects Mabinay to Kabankalan.
Initial investigation also showed ground crack of about eight inches outside the river bed near where the sinkholes had formed, Uy further disclosed.
As of Thursday afternoon, the town mayor said the sinkholes are no longer visible as the river waters continue to rise due to continuous rains.
Mayor Uy said monitoring will continue on the development of the sinkholes until Monday when the Mines and GeoSciences Bureau of the Department of Environment & Natural Resources in Region 7 will send a team over from Cebu.
A pre-emptive evacuation will be enforced if rains will further increase the size of the sinkholes this weekend, he said. The house nearest to the sinkholes is about 20 meters away, Uy added.
Meanwhile, Charlie Fabre, Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office chief, disclosed that a team of at least three people, including geologists, from DENR-7 in Cebu, will be bringing with them equipment to measure the size of the sinkholes as well as to gather vital data.
The equipment is the same used by the MGB-7 scientists to measure the sinkhole in Bohol in the aftermath of the disastrous Magnitude 7.2 killer quake last October 1, 2014, Fabre added. (PNA)
