Marilyn Cahatol

People wade through a flooded street after heavy rains brought by the enhanced southwest monsoon in Pampanga on August 31, 2026. Jam Sta. Rosa, AFP

Article (news)

Michael Delizo

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 960px; display: block;" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/178841244031920260831-habagat-pampanga-flooding-AFP-2.jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align: left;">People wade through a flooded street after heavy rains brought by the enhanced southwest monsoon in Pampanga on August 31, 2026.<em>&nbsp;Jam Sta. Rosa, AFP&nbsp;</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA &mdash; The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Thursday said local government units&#39; (LGUs) preparations for recent disasters have improved and that the government cannot be blamed over the deaths.</p><p>&quot;Karamihan po ng mga namamatay ngayon ay hindi na po talaga dahil sa kapabayaan ng gobyerno, kundi it&#39;s really in the behavior of the people already,&quot; said Robin Lim, program manager of the DILG-Central Office Disaster Information Coordinating Center (CODIX).</p><p>&quot;It has come in a way na hindi na po talaga kasalanan ng gobyerno ngayon kasi pinapa-evacuate na po natin sila,&quot; he added.</p><p>Latest data from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council showed 39 deaths due to the combined effects of cyclones Luis, Maymay and Neneng, and the southwest monsoon or habagat. At least 20,279 families, or 71,364 individuals were served inside 968 evacuation centers.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/8/31/don-t-wait-for-disaster-to-peak-before-evacuating-ncrpo-1340">Don&rsquo;t wait for disaster to peak before evacuating&mdash;NCRPO</a></div><p>Lim said the casualty rate had been declining, which he described as a &quot;very good indicator&quot; that the national government and LGUs were &quot;really doing or ramping up their efforts&quot; to instill disaster preparedness at the community level.</p><p>He also noted the number of people who preemptively evacuated, saying the figures showed communities&#39; improved response to government warnings.</p><p>&quot;We&#39;ve been doing this for the past 10 years already. Malayo na po ang narating ng Pilipinas sa pag-advocate ng disaster preparedness at mas informed na po ang mga tao,&quot; he said.</p><p>Meanwhile, Ana Lyn Baltazar-Cortez, assistant regional director of the DILG-National Capital Region, said the interior department was providing technical assistance to LGUs to continuously update their contingency and local disaster risk reduction and management plans based on recent risk assessments and experiences from previous disasters.</p><p>&quot;Dito sa Metro Manila, mataas ang capacity ng ating mga local government units in terms of updating their plans and ensuring that their plans are responsive to the needs of their communities,&quot; she said.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/9/1/pnp-orders-police-presence-on-flooded-roads-vulnerable-bridges-amid-continuing-rains-0930">PNP orders police presence on flooded roads, vulnerable bridges amid continuing rains</a></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JEMCeELVhP4?si=KYZ-I4m3wjegZ9Yz" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>

<p>The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Thursday said local government units' (LGUs) preparations for recent disasters have improved and that the government cannot be blamed over the deaths.</p>

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Thursday said local government units' (LGUs) preparations for recent disasters have improved and that the government cannot be blamed over the deaths.

DILG: LGU disaster preparations improving, deaths not due to gov't neglect

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DILG: LGU disaster preparations improving, deaths not due to gov't neglect

Michael Delizo,

ABS-CBN News

Published September 03, 2026 01:45 PM PHT

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