Sirao garden (CDN FILE)
TOURISTS are safe to visit and enjoy Barangay Sirao’s famous flower farms.
The Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (CCDRRMO) changed its resolution on Wednesday to disallow the entry to the famous flower farms because of the landslides in other parts of the Barangay Sirao.
The CCDRRMO allowed entry in the area after the Mines and Geo-sciences Bureau in Central Visayas (MGB) 7 assured that the part of the barangay is safe to visit.
MGB-7 information officer Marian Codilla told Cebu Daily News that they are more concern on the critical areas in Sirao that are not suitable for the moment.
“Kung mag farm lang, or tourist okay ra (If they are only farming or tourists visiting, it is okay). Ang tourist kadali raman na (Tourist only take few hours). They come and go,” Codilla said.
While if residents will try to settle, it is more dangerous since the soil is still moving, Codilla added.
She said that there are specific areas in Sirao which are not suitable for settlement.
Meanwhile, the continuous rain due to low pressure area has affected not only the residents but also the tourism in mountain barangays in Cebu City.
Severino Ople, who is the caretaker of the famous Sirao garden Little Amsterdam, said that even though they were not directly affected by the landslide, the weather had affected tourists from visiting their farm.
He said that usually their farm had 70 to 100 tourists in a day, but last Monday when the landslide happened, they only had below 20 tourists per day.