‘VINTA’ FLOODS SWAMP ORO, DAVAO
Areas hit by Vinta were also hit hardest by storm Sendong in December 2011 and typhoon Pablo in 2012.
Tropical storm Vinta (international name: Tembin) brought heavy rains and strong winds that caused widespread flooding as it made landfall in Davao Oriental and crossed Northern Mindanao on Friday.
Chest-high floodwaters, reminiscent of the deadly 2011 tropical storm Sendong, inundated Cagayan de Oro City Friday morning.
The City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Department (CDRRMD) placed Cagayan de Oro on red alert Friday morning as the Cagayan River reached its critical level.
“It was like Sendong all over again, but only this happened in the morning,” a resident said.
Sendong (international codename: Washi) ravaged Northern Mindanao and Caraga regions on the night of December 16, 2011, leaving more than 1,200 people dead. Majority, or at least 900, were in Cagayan de Oro.
As of 2 a.m. Friday, the CDRRMD reported 33 barangays were inundated and a total of 3,735 families or 14,041 individuals were evacuated and housed in 27 evacuation centers.
By 10 a.m., Friday, Cagayan River started to rise from its normal level of 5 meters to 6.6 meters. It reached its highest at 11 meters by 11 a.m.
At 3 p.m. Friday, city information officer Maricel Casiño-Rivera said floodwaters have started to subside.
“The worst is over, but rescue operations are still underway,” she said.
Rescue operations were undertaken in barangays Carmen, Tablon, Cugman, Gusa, Bonbon, among others.
Dikes built by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to prevent flooding were of no use as river water level rose to match the height of the structure.
Some areas were closed to traffic. The Roads and Traffic Administration (RTA) declared Biasong to Tinib Road from Bell Church area impassable to light vehicles, portion of Puerto and Tablon highway, Acacia St. at Carmen, and Domingo Velez streets, are also impassable to light vehicles.
In Cateel, Davao Oriental, where the storm made landfall at 1:45 a.m. Friday, over 300 families fled to evacuation centers as strong winds and heavy torrential rains battered the area and cut off power Thursday night.
Cateel was also devastated by Super Typhoon Pablo (international name: Bopha) in December 2012.
As of 7 a.m. Friday, the initial report from Cateel showed that 306 families or 1,287 individuals were sheltered in seven evacuation centers in the town.
In Compostela Valley, a total 4,292 individuals from the towns of New Bataan, Montevista, Nabunturan, Maragusan, Mabini, Pantukan, Mawab and Compostela are currently staying in evacuation centers.
Provincial information officer Fe Maestre said the road going to Cabidianan from Poblacion, Nabunturan is not passable because water from a nearby dam overflowed.
The local disaster council urged communities along the Lasang River to evacuate as the river reached “critical level.”
The council also said it was closely monitoring the Davao, Bunawan and Lipadas rivers.