FLIGHT TO SAFETY

A muddy doll lies in the shanty of four-year-old Ailyn Rose Piquit as a witness to the tragic floodwaters that swept her away from her mother’s arms when the rains poured on Monday. (CDN PHOTO/ TONEE DESPOJO)

Hours of heavy rain on Monday killed at least two people, including a four- year-old girl, and caused the evacuation of hundreds in Mandaue City as the murky waters of Butuanon River overflowed, unleashing knee- to waist-deep floods.

Minor landslides were also reported in the cities of Cebu and Naga and the towns of Dumanjug, in the south and Aloguinsan, in the midwest.

Flooding was reported by the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (PDRRMO) in the cities of Danao, Carcar, Talisay and towns of Catmon, Argao, Consolacion, Sogod and Barili.

Unceasing rain hit Metro Cebu and the rest of Cebu province early dawn, just as the Sinulog revelry was winding down.

Oscar Tabada, Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) Visayas director, said the rains will continue today and advised the
public to take precautionary measures including moving to safer grounds.

Yesterday’s rains were caused by a low pressure area (LPA) located about 100 kilometers east of Eastern Samar.

Pagasa Mactan issued an orange warning for Cebu and recorded 70 millimeters of rainfall from 3:16 a.m. until 2 p.m. Heaviest rainfall was recorded at 5:30 a.m.

An orange warning means the weather station expects heavy rainfall of 15 to 30 millimeters per hour. Floods and landslides are also expected.

One millimeter is equal to 5,000 barrels of water, said Alfredo Quiblat Jr., chief of Pagasa Mactan.

Cebu will continue to experience light to moderate and occasionally heavy rains today.

Flooding casualty

The first casualty was reported in Naga City, after four-year-old Ailyn Rose Paquit was swept away by raging floodwaters which burst through a concrete fence atop a valley
near the family’s shanty in Barangay Patag, some 10 kms. from the Naga City Hall.

Her mother survived after she managed to hang on to a tree but lost grip of Ailyn.

An 18-year-old Arvin Entroliso, a fisherman from Barangay Tinaan, Naga, also drowned after he ventured out to fish in a lake and got stuck in deep mud.

It had been raining hard since midnight in Naga, said Rey Mantalaba, a member of the city’s emergency action team, and residents along the rivers of Tinaan, Pandan and Balirong were advised to prepare for evacuation should water begin to overflow.

Suspensions

In Mandaue City, Mayor Luigi Quisumbing announced the suspension of classes in all public preschool to secondary level in his city at 7 a.m. after several schools reported a rise in water levels.

By 8 a.m., Cebu Governor Hilario Davide III also made the same announcement covering all public schools across the province.

At noontime, Deputy Mayor for Education Councilor Joy Augustus Young, announced the half-day suspension of classes in Cebu City.

Anticipating more rains, Young announced late on Monday that the suspension of classes will continue till today in the city’s 31 mountain barangays.

Yesterday’s rains also caused the cancelation of the scheduled repeat performance of the top five winners of Sinulog 2017 which was set at 1 p.m. at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) grand stage.

Sinulog organizers went on to award trophies and cash prizes to the winners inside the CCSC covered gym.

“This is for the safety of the performers. Our apologies,” said Sinulog Foundation Inc. Executive Director Ricky Ballesteros in a post on Facebook at noontime.

Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC) head Baltazar Tribunalo said that flood- and landslide-prone areas in the province were being closely monitored.

Preemptive Evacuations

In Mandaue City, Mayor Quisumbing ordered the evacuation of close to 500 families living in four barangays near Butuanon River, which had overflowed.

Residents of flood-prone areas in Paknaan, Alang-Alang, Tabok and Canduman were transported by government trucks and brought to covered courts and public schools for temporary shelter.

At least 60 families from the Paknaan relocation site were also asked to evacuate after water from the Butuanon River started to submerge the 6.5-hectare area in knee- to waist-deep floods.

Around 15 rescue trucks coming from different local government units (LGUs) and private volunteers from as far as San Fernando town, southern Cebu, came to assist in the evacuations.

Quisumbing directed personnel from the City Social Welfare Office to prepare relief goods for the flood victims “to also make the evacuation centers a little more comfortable for the evacuees.”

The mayor ordered the forced evacuation to especially secure the children.

“We don’t want children to play in the river,” Quisumbing said in a radio dyAB interview.

An eight-year-old boy drowned last week while swimming in flood waters coming from Butuanon River.

Luchi Israel, 40, a resident of Paknaan, told Cebu Daily News that this was the third time this month that floods entered their homes.

“The government is rushing our evacuation and yet they bring us to yet another danger zone,” Israel complained in Cebuano referring to more floods around Paknaan because of the overflowing river.

She said that Mandaue City officials and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) only needed to complete a long delayed riprap wall it had started to build months ago to prevent Butuanon River from overflowing.

In Cebu City, around 84 families were evacuated from Mount Pung-ol in Barangay Sirao after parts of the mountain cracked due to heavy rains.

In Talisay City, Mayor Eduardo Gullas also supervised the evacuation of families from Sitio Isla Verde in Barangay San Isidro and Sitio Bahala in Barangay Dumlog after the nearby Mananga River started to overflow.

As of 12 noon on Monday, PDRRMO data showed that at least 175 families were evacuated across the province due to flooding and landslides.

Most of the evacuees (130 families) were from Barangay Ibo in Toledo City; while Liloan town reported the evacuation of 36 families and Dumanjug, 9 families.

Landslides

Loose soil blocked the roads in Sitio Kan-irag in Barangay Sirao and in Sitio Lupa in Barangay Sapangdaku – two mountain villages in Cebu City.

Nagiel Bañacia, head of the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (CDRRMO), said he dispatched heavy equipment to reopen the road to motorists.

Minor landslides were also reported in Sitio Tabok Metropolis Subdivision in Barangay Pit-os, Sitio Garahe in Barangay Busay, lower Agsungot, at the back of the Binaliw barangay hall, Villa Leyson in Barangay Bacayan and Sitio Naga in Barangay Pamutan.

Councilor Dave Tumulak, the city’s deputy mayor for peace and order, said at least three houses made of light materials were washed away by floodwaters in Sitio Ylaya in Barangay Talamban; but no one was reported injured.

Authorities are now monitoring the water level of Mahiga Creek which encompasses several barangays in the cities of Cebu and Mandaue for possible evacuation of more residents.