Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson will not declare a state of calamity in the entire province after intense rains brought by the southwest monsoon or habagat caused widespread floods earlier this month.

“We will not declare a state of calamity. Evacuees affected by the recent floods have already gone home,” Lacson said on Thursday, September 26.

However, he said the provincial government’s concern right now is the continuing unrest of Kanlaon Volcano.

“We are always wary of an eruption. Just follow whatever instructions are issued, especially by the disaster risk reduction office,” Lacson said.

Lacson said the provincial capitol could provide face masks to affected residents after strong sulfuric fumes from Kanlaon affected 22 villages in five local government units earlier this week.

“The wind blew the sulfur dioxide, which has always been there in the past. It’s blowing toward us, and that’s why people can smell it,” he said.

“The wind is not in our favor,” the governor added.

Earlier, the provincial government was studying if a state of calamity could be declared in Negros Occidental following widespread rains and floods due to monsoon rains last week.

Lacson said the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) was assessing the damage brought by heavy rains to declare the province under a state of calamity.

La Carlota City and the municipalities of Hinigaran, San Enrique and Valladolid were placed under a state of calamity due to intense rain-induced floods.

Most local government units (LGUs) in the province experienced floods earlier this month due to intense rains brought about by habagat enhanced by Tropical Storms “Ferdie” and “Helen,” and Tropical Depression “Gener.”

A total of 207,197 residents or 56,807 families have been affected by floods due to recent intense rains and inclement weather in the province, the latest PDRRMC data showed.

At least 261 barangays in 25 LGUs have been impacted by the severe weather conditions, it added.

A total of 1,035 houses were damaged, with 46 destroyed and 989 partially damaged.

The damage to agriculture caused by the effects of habagat reached P149,738,745, PDRRMC data showed.

Rice, high-value crops and corn fields in 160 barangays sustained damage amounting to P146,184,459.28, data added.

The fisheries sector also suffered damage totaling P1,781,361, affecting 15 barangays, while livestock sustained losses amounting to P1,772,925.54./WDJ