25 drown in Davao floods

DAVAO CITY, Philippines  – Twenty-five people, including children as young as two years old, were confirmed dead and 15 others were still missing in flashfloods that hit the city following a three-hour downpour that started late Tuesday night.

At least 15,000 families were affected by the flooding, said to be the worst to hit the city in recent years.

Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte said that as of yesterday noon, 15 people were still missing and a total of 40 houses were washed away. The city estimated the total cost of damage at P40 million, including the wrecked footbridge in barangay Matina Pangi.

Among the dead were Angelita Paches, 65 years old; Alexander Baricuatro, four years old; Jason Ataros, three; and John Michel Alvarez, seven; Rowena Balderosa, seven; Melchin Roseno, two; John Carlo Alvarez, three; Jason Aturos, three; and Tito Servidad, 53 years old; Dennis Ayag, four years old; Pastor Jimmy Bao; Conchita Bao; Isadora Baricuatro, all residents of Matina Pangi.

Thousands more were inundated by the rising floodwater in at least four barangays, namely Matina Aplaya, Matina Pangi, Bangkal and Talomo. Some reports said floodwaters reached as high as four feet inside subdivisions.

Authorities closed the Matina-Balusong Bridge after cracks were noticed in the bridge, causing heavy traffic.

Duterte called for an emergency meeting to map out efforts of the city government to help the victims.

Vice Mayor Rodrigo Duterte also called for a special session of the city council for the declaration of a state of calamity in the affected areas.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) here revealed that they only recorded 8 mm of rain, although their rain gauge is located at their station near the airport and not in Matina, where the heavy downpour took place.

Mayor Duterte said cash assistance will be given to the flashflood victims while they could also avail of possible relocation should they decide to transfer to safer ground.

PAGASA officials said the rains were caused by an intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) that hit most parts of Mindanao, including this city.

They said the rains would continue until over the weekend due to continued stay of the ITCZ in the area.

The city government immediately put up evacuation centers in elevated portions of the city, but most of the flood victims went back to their homes as soon as the water subsided at around 4 a.m. yesterday.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has provided relief assistance worth P380,000 to the victims, while the Philippine Coast Guard has deployed expert divers and two rubber boats to help in the rescue efforts.

Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said the DSWD-Field Office XI already requested the central office for the release of P5.3 million to purchase additional relief goods.

As of 1 p.m. yesterday, a total of 1,475 families with 7,375 persons remained inside the evacuation centers in Central Park Gym, Matina Pangi, Matina Aplaya and Matina Balusong in Davao City.

She said the 23,525 families with 117,625 persons who opted to stay outside evacuation centers are also being provided with food and non-food commodities.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) mobilized its entire disaster units with the help of the DSWD, Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), in coordination with the city’s disaster units.

The DOH in Davao Region is also in the area and has provided P31,000 worth of medicines while conducting health assessment and monitoring in the evacuation centers.

The fatalities are expected to rise as scores of missing residents in the flood-stricken villages have yet to be recovered by Army and police and other rescue teams.

PAGASA: ‘Ondoy’-like rains possible

Graciano Yumul, PAGASA supervising undersecretary, said the rains that triggered flashflood in the city were not brought by a weather disturbance but localized thunderstorms.

Yumul also warned that the country will continue to experience excessive rainfall until September due to the residual effect of the La Niña phenomenon.

She said the La Niña event has terminated last May but there is a lag time of three to four months that is why the public could still feel its effects.

“The southwest monsoon (habagat) will still persist until September, so if a typhoon hits the country and enhances the habagat, we could expect Ondoy-like rain,” Yumul said in Filipino.

On Sept. 26, 2009, tropical storm “Ondoy” (international name Ketsana) dumped over 400 millimeters of rains in Metro Manila and nearby provinces in nine hours, leaving some P11.1 billion worth of damage to properties. It also killed 464 people and affected some 4.9 million families.

“We were in a La Niña period when Ondoy happened,” Yumul explained.

Two storms - “Egay” and “Falcon” – have dumped heavy rains over most parts of the country in the past couple of weeks, affecting over a million people and destroying millions of pesos worth of properties.

He said aside from the tropical cyclones, the southwest monsoon and the intertropical convergence zone also triggered rains in some parts of Luzon and Mindanao.

“We can expect that the abnormal (weather) will be the normal (weather),” Yumul told a weekly media forum at the Philippine Information Agency in Quezon City.

He said global warming can heat the oceans and generate more moisture which leads to more rain. - Helen Flores, Evelyn Macairan, Jaime Laude, AP