LEGAZPI CITY -- Moderate to heavy rains for the past several days have triggered landslides, and floods killing one person and isolating some villages and destroying dikes, bridges in several towns in Albay including this city, the Albay Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council (PDCC) said yesterday.

        Albay Gov. Joey Sarte Salceda, PDCC chairman, said the accumulated rainfall from Feb. 1 to 19 has reached 404.2 millimeters which according to PAGASA is beyond the normal rainfall that may cause saturation in low lying and upland areas of the province.

        This came shortly after Albay Gov. Joey Salceda ordered all municipal and city mayors in Albay to reactivate their respective disaster coordinating councils to conduct monitoring and assessment of the damages wrought by the weather disturbance.

        He also ordered them to submit reports to the PDCC for consolidation and evaluation for possible declaration of a state of the calamity in the province.

        Reports received by the PDCC indicate that landslide hit a house in Sitio Datag, Barangay Sta Teresa, Malilipot that buried alive one Domingo Binlayo, Sr., 70.

        Floods washed out and destroyed the temporary bridge at Barangay Kilicao, isolating barangays Alcala, Matnog, Budiao and Kilicao from the town proper of Daraga. While a newly constructed dike at the Yawa River in Daraga was also partly destroyed.

        In Sto. Domingo town floods forced 12 families from Barangay Salvacion to leave their homes and seek temporary shelter at the village multi purpose all.

        In Malinao town, floods cause a part of Awang dike to collapse, Barangays Labnig and Ogob were flooded and local disaster officials are closely monitoring the swelling at the Quinale River due to the continuous rains.

        In Malilipot town, flood waters have reached the main highway as local disaster authorities there are preparing to evacuate villagers affected by the flooding and the possible closure of the road to traffic to avoid accidents.

        In this city part of the city proper covering several villages are flooded prompting the city disaster authorities to closely monitor and be on alert for emergency response.

        Cedric Daep, PDCC action officer said they have directed all local disaster councils to assess critical structures and situation such as river swelling, flooding and landslide.

        Daep said heavy equipments and dump trucks were pre-positioned and on stand-by for immediate mobilization once emergency response is needed.

        Salceda said he allowed various disaster councils to declare their area under state of calamity in case of evacuation and damages to infrastructure and agriculture have been noted.

        PAGASA has warned that flooding would hit the low-lying areas of Ligao City, Oas, Polangui, and Libon in Albay province; Bula, Pili, Bombon, Ocampo, Cabusao, Calabanga, Camaligan, Canaman, Gainza, Libmanan, Magarao, Milaor, Minalabac, Naga City, Pamplona, San Fernando and Sipocot in Camarines Sur.

        The tail end of the cold front continues to affect Luzon and Visayas areas causing scattered rain showers and thunderstorm becoming widespread in Bicol. With report by Rhaydz B. Barcia