Ormoc

The City of Ormoc is a 1st class city in the province of Leyte, Philippines. The city's name is derived from ogmok, an old Visayan term for lowland or depressed plain. It is the first non-provincial city of the Philippines. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 177,524 people. Ormoc is the economic, cultural, commercial and transportation hub of western Leyte. Ormoc City is an independent component city, not subject to regulation from the Provincial Government of Leyte. However, the city is part of the congressional district IV of Leyte together with Albuera, Kananga, Merida, and Isabel towns. In November 1991, the Ormoc region was inundated by Tropical Storm Thelma (local name: Uring). Flash floods and landslides killed more than 6,000 people, mostly in Ormoc itself. In 1950, Kananga was created in 1950 from the barrios of Lonoy, Kananga, Rizal, Tugbong, Montebello, Aguiting, Tagaytay, Montealegre, Libungao, Naghalin, and Masarayao which all used to be part of Ormoc City.