Nonstop rains prompted Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama to order the evacuation of Yolanda survivors from the Tent City at the South Road Properties (SRP) to a city-owned warehouse.
The continuous rains was caused by the monsoon or habagat and a low pressure area.
Water entered some tents, and turned the site into muddy ground at the SRP.
“There’s a GSO (Government Service Offices) warehouse nearby,” said the mayor.
While occupants wanted to build temporary houses on site, the mayor said this was out of the question.
“Let’s not talk about that now. I cannot assure them that. That would just lead to more problems,” the mayor said.
He said the flooding was temporary and that the city engineering office would address it by improving the drainage system in the area.
Cebu and other parts of the country have been experiencing moderate to heavy rains because of a low pressure area and the amihan (northeast monsoon) which carries cold Siberian winds.
Landslide warning
Due to the risk of landslides, residents of mountain barangays Kalunasan, Busay and Sinsin and those who live near mountain slopes were advised to move to safer ground if they notice soil cracks in their area.
“The three days of continuous raining results in the saturation of the soil. Delikado ni (it is dangerous) because this is where possible landslides may occur,” said Alvin Santillana, operations head of the disaster response office.
He said barangay disaster councils were asked to monitor these areas and that lowland barangays were less of a problem because the city’s drainage system has been able to absorb the rainfall so far.
A rain gauge in the Mambaling office showed that rainfall remains at a manageable level, said Santillana.
He said the city engineering office is working to desilt bodies of water.
Low Pressure
In its 5 p.m. advisory, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said the low pressure area was 45 kilometers east of Dipolog City.
Central Visayas, Northern and Northeastern Mindanao will continue to experience cloudy skies with moderate to heavy rain, which may trigger flashfloods and landslides.