A resident tries to salvage parts of his shattered house in barangay Mambaling, south Cebu City after a tornado struck.
At least three persons were injured when a tornado yesterday struck several barangays in south Cebu City and Talisay City.
At least 29 houses in sitios Nava, Viking and Alaska were damaged. Tin roofs peeled off and were blown away as the tornado passed through at past 2 p.m.
A small tree was also uprooted in sitio Ma. Gochan, also in barangay Mambaling.
Houswife Amiya Daoumani, 36, was taking a bath in sitio Badjaoan, when the roof of the house was torn off.
She grabbed clothes from a neighbor’s clothesline and looked for her granddaughter before running away barefoot.
“We were all in a panic. The wind was so strong so we jumped into the sea,” she said in Cebuano.
At least 90 percent of the roof of the brangay gym in sitio Viking was blown off, said Mambaling barangay captain Willie Go.
Ambulances and firetrucks rushed to the area.
The tornado was first reported in sitio Tana in barangay Tisa then moved to barangay Mambaling, and the South Road Properties (SRP).
Then tornado went to barangay San Roque in Talisay City before it dissipated over the sea.
Power was interrupted in these areas and traffic enforcers immediately halted vehicle traffic for about five minutes at the SRP to let the tornado pass.
The weather disturbance occured as parts of the Visayas, Mindanao and Bicol region were on alert because of tropical depression Domeng
The tornado was preceded by a heavy downpour that lasted only a few minutes, said Lamberto Geolin Jr. of sitio Alaska.
He was walking towards the highway when he saw people running.
Some were crying and were hysterical. He then noticed the tornado swirling towards his direction.
“Nakit-an gyud nako ang nagtuyok-tuyok nga sin sa ibabaw”, he said. (I saw roofing sheets getting blown away and flying in a circular motion.)
Geolin said he ran back to his house to secure his family.
“Kusog gyud kaayo, akong gisuwayan og sira ang pultahan, di gyud siya masira”, he said.
(The wind was really strong. I tried shutting the door, but the wind kept on pushing it back.)
Roderick Lim, 36, suffered a deep cut in his right toe during the commotion when panic-stricken residents rushed out of their houses.
Erlita Flora, 28 was wounded in the abdomen and scraped her right arm while Lantara Muscarani, 80, was hit by falling debris in the shoulder, said Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak.
The incident happened just as parts of the Visayas, Mindanao and the Bicol region are on alert because of tropical depression Domeng.
There was no direct warning or confirmation of a tornado by the state weather bureau Pagasa.
At past 9 p.m. Monday, Pagasa warned that thunderstorms may develop in Metro Cebu in the next 12 hours.
Alfredo Quiblat of Pagasa’s Mactan station said yesterday their radar spotted a thunderstorm cloud at 1:45pm “south to southwest of Mactan”.
At the time the advisory was issued, he said they could not determine if the cloud would develop into a tornado, but there was a possibility.
Quiblat said that a developing thunderstorm cloud could mature into a tornado within 15 to 20 minutes. Once it becomes a tornado, it could last to up to around 30 minutes before it dissipates.
Quiblat said the weather phenomenon was not necessarily related to tropical depression Domeng as it was only a “local convective cloud”.
Aside from houses, a Christian church and a mosque were also damaged in sitio Badjaoan in Mambaling.
Molo Daomani, a community leader in sitio Nava, said he herded residents into his house after they heard loud cracking sounds.
“Kuyawa jud namo. Nagtuo man mi nga sunog kay nagbuto-buto man,” he said.
(We were so terrified. We thought there was a fire because of the loud explosion sounds.)
Affected residents will be temporarily housed in public schools.
“We are still assessing how many residents were affected,” said barangay captain Go.
(Barangay Duljo was also affected but there was not reports of damage there and Tisa. There were also no damage reports in San Roque, said Talisay City information officer Vince Monterde.