DPWH: Some roads in northern Luzon closed due to flooding, landslides

MANILA — Tropical Storm Nika, which is forecast to leave the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Tuesday, has left more than a dozen sections of national roads in northern Luzon impassable because of landslides and flooding, the Department of Public Works and Highways said.

National roads are part of the national road system and are maintained by the DPWH.

READ: Tropical Storm Ofel enters PAR as Nika weakens, moves away

According to the DPWH's maintenance bureau, the following road sections in the Cagayan Administrative Region have yet to be cleared for use:

• Banaue-Hungduan-Benguet Boundary Road (Tukucan, Tinoc, Ifugao) due to a landslide
• Banaue-Mayoyao-A Lista-Isabela Boundary Road (K0341+(-880) – K0411+187, Ifugao) due to soil collapse
• Lubuagan–Batong-Buhay Road (Puapo, Dangtalan, Pasil, Kalinga) due to soil/rock collapse
• Baguio - Bontoc Road (Namatec, Sabangan section and Malitep, Bontoc, Mountain Province) due to soil collapse and fallen utility poles
• Mountain Province - Cagayan via Tabuk-Enrile Road (Sameyeo, Bontoc Ili, Bontoc section and Makutiti, Sadanga section, Mountain Province) due to soil collapse
• Mountain Province - Ilocos Sur via Tue Road (Cabunagan, Tadian, Mountain Province) due to soil collapse
• Mountain Province - Nueva Vizcaya Road (Ab-ab, Bayyo section, Talubin section, Lat-ey, Samoki section, K0381+050, Samoki section, and Fanias, Samoki section, Bontoc, Mountain Province) due to soil collapse
• Sagada - Besao - Quirino Road (Banguitan, Besao, Mountain Province) due to soil collapse.
• Junction Talubin-Barlig-Natonin-Paracelis-Calaccad Road (Natonin, Mountain Province) (a. K0430+600, Tonglayan; b. K0426+250, Porag; and c. K0428+800, Tonglayan) due to soil collapse and mudslides
• Meanwhile, the Itawes Overflow Bridge (Sta. Barbara, Piat, Cagayan), Gadu-Carilucud-Nabbotuan-Palao-Maccutay Road (Barangay Carilucud, Solana, Cagayan) and 
• Junction Abbag-Nagtipunan-Nueva Vizcaya Road via Dupax (La Conwap, Nagtipunan, Quirino) in the Cagayan Valley region are impassable due to flooding.

Junction Victoria-Maddela-Alicia-Kasibu Boundary Road (Barangay Villa Santiago, Aglipay, Quirino) is impassable due to soil collapse and because of fallen trees blocking it.

Use of the Dinadiawan-Casiguran sections of the Baler-Casiguran Road in barangays Simabahan and Marikit is limited to heavy vehicles because of flooding, DPWH also said.

The section of the Santiago-Tuguegarao Road in Barangay San Pedro-San Pablo in Aurora, Isabela is also only passable to heavy vehicles.

RELATED: Floods, landslides threaten Cordillera, Cagayan Valley amid Nika's torrential rains

DPWH said its teams have already put up warning signs to inform the public of the road closures.

"Clearing operations will begin once the affected areas are declared safe for maintenance activities," it also said.

FEW FLIGHTS CANCELLED

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, in a separate advisory, said the airports in Vigan (Ilocos Sur), Lingayen (Pangasinan) and in Baguio City are "back to normal" but that commercial flights remain suspended because the weather.

The Laoag International Airport in Ilocos Norte is operational and has not reported any flight cancellations, it also said.

"Airports of Basco, Tuguegarao, and Cauayan are operational [with] no damage to facilities while airport personnel are properly accounted for," CAAP said.

Basco Airport in Batanes has cancelled four flights due to strong winds. CAAP said 234 passengers were affected by the cancellations of Manila-Basco and Clark-Basco flights.

RELATED VIDEO