High alert up in Lanao provinces vs flooding

HIT BY A WHIRLWIND This house is among the eight structures damaged as a whirlwind hits the community of Purok 3 at Barangay Poblacion in Kolambugan, Lanao del Norte, on Christmas Day. —KOLAMBUGAN MUNICIPAL DISASTER RISK REDUCTION MANAGEMENT OFFICE PHOTO

ILIGAN CITY — It was a wet Christmas Day in Mindanao as easterlies started dumping rain in many parts of the island early Monday morning, exposing communities to the threats of floods and landslides.

In Lanao del Norte, eight houses were partially damaged when a whirlwind struck Purok 3 of Barangay Poblacion in Kolambugan town amid heavy rainfall and strong winds around 7 a.m. on Christmas Day. No casualty was reported.

Roy Secuya, operations officer of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) in Lanao del Norte, said they were still assessing the damage and how many families were affected.

Both provinces of Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur, as well as the cities of Iligan and Marawi, experienced moderate to heavy rainfall on Christmas Day due to easterlies, putting the PDRRMOs in these provinces on high alert for flooding and other rain-induced calamities.

All the 22 municipal DRRMOs in Lanao del Norte were directed to be on standby at their respective command centers to monitor the situation in coastal and hinterland villages and the status of riverbanks for possible flooding or landslides.

Senior Grade Carlos Bayeta, station commander of the Philippine Coast Guard in Misamis Occidental, said heavy rainfall was also being experienced in the province. But as of 12:30 p.m. on Monday, there was no advisory suspending the operation of barges plying the route between Ozamiz City and Mukas, Kolambugan in Lanao del Norte.

READ: 3 dead in Lanao del Norte floods

READ: 742 people evacuated due to floods in Cagayan town

Rain advisory

As early as 6 a.m. on Monday, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) had issued a general flood advisory for the Caraga region, based on its 12-hour forecast that showed light to moderate rains.

The state weather bureau advised precautionary measures in the provinces of Dinagat Islands, Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur.

By 10:20 a.m., Pagasa issued Heavy Rainfall Warning No. 2, raising the Yellow Warning Level over the provinces of Davao Oriental, Agusan del Sur and Davao de Oro, where rains were expected to reach up to 75,000 drums per square kilometer.

Pagasa said that at the time it issued the advisory, moderate with occasionally heavy downpour (of up to 15 liters per square meter per hour) was already experienced in parts of the provinces of Agusan del Norte, Bukidnon, Davao Occidental, Davao Oriental, Davao del Norte, Lanao del Norte, Misamis Occidental, Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur.

Some parts of Bukidnon, Davao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Misamis Oriental, Cotabato, South Cotabato, Zamboanga del Norte, Camiguin, Agusan del Norte, Davao Oriental, Davao Occidental, Surigao del Norte and Davao City were experiencing light to moderate rains (of up to 5.5 liters per square meter per hour), according to Pagasa.

Tremor

Amid the rains in Surigao del Sur, a minor earthquake struck southeast of Cagwait town at 8:10 a.m. The offshore magnitude 3.7 tremor had a depth of 21 kilometers.

On Christmas Eve, two light earthquakes 18 minutes apart shook Surigao del Sur, considered as aftershocks of the Dec. 2 magnitude 7.4 earthquake.

At 10:02 a.m. on Monday, a magnitude 4.3 tremor struck northeast of Hinatuan town in Surigao del Sur, with a depth of six kilometers. It was felt at Intensity 4 in Hinatuan and Intensity 3 in Bislig City.

A magnitude 4.9 temblor followed at 10:20 a.m. northeast of Hinatuan, with a depth of one kilometer. It was felt at Intensity 5 in Hinatuan and Intensity 4 in Bislig City.