By JEN BAYLON

The agricultural damage due to the dry spell caused by the El Niño phenomenon in Negros Occidental has now reached P184.7 million, data from the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) showed.

As of Tuesday, April 16, the damage to crops in the province climbed to P184,764,120.11 from P173.576 million reported last April 11, the OPA said.

The dry spell has affected 4,739 farmers from 178 barangays across 25 local government units (LGUs) in the province.

The affected LGUs include Cauayan town (P67,889,229 in damages, with 20 barangays and 1,128 farmers affected), Kabankalan City (P41,910,361.20, 13 barangays and 1,214 farmers) and Himamaylan City (P13,499,975.92, 15 barangays and 381 farmers).

Other affected areas are Candoni town (P10,300,773.20, nine barangays and 263 farmers) and Bago City (P8,233,608.34, 14 barangays and 195 farmers).

Rice and corn fields suffered losses worth P180 million and P4.7 million, respectively.

Earlier this week, the provincial government was not yet considering declaring a state of calamity in Negros Occidental due to the effects of El Niño.

Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson announced that they are processing financial assistance for farmers whose crops have been damaged due to the severe weather conditions.

Kabankalan under state of calamity

Negros Occidental’s Kabankalan City has been placed under a state of calamity due to agricultural damage brought by El Niño.

The Sangguniang Panlungsod, during their regular session yesterday, approved the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council’s recommendation to declare the city under a state of calamity.

Kabankalan Mayor Benjie Miranda said almost all barangays in the city are affected by water shortages, which prompted the city government to implement water rationing.

The latest data from the City Agriculture Office showed that 41.1 percent of the farmers have been affected by extensive drought./JB, WDJ