Davao execs see death toll climbing past 30

DAVAO CITY—The death toll in what residents said was the most devastating flood here in recent memory could exceed 30 as people grappled for answers that some said were staring them in the face.

The flood, which struck at dawn of June 29 and killed 27 as of Thursday afternoon, isn’t new for those living close to the river of Matina Pangi.

“Every year, we experience floods, but not this big,” said Annabelle Sorima, 48, whose house near the river was washed away by the rampaging waters.

Sorima’s family was sleeping in another house in Matina Crossing when the floods came. She said she felt something wet on her back that roused her from sleep.

When she stood to check, she saw floodwater rising in the street corner, heading for their house. She took whatever she could in her arms: a sack of charcoal, a folding bed, and a shattered garbage bin.

“The water was so fearsome that night,” she said. “It could really kill a man.”

In Matina Pangi, Gregorio Mascarinas said it was the first time he and his family experienced such a rapid rise in floodwaters.

“I have been a resident here since the 1970s, but it was the first time that the flood became so scary we felt it would leave us all dead,” said the 67-year-old grandfather.

The village, he said, had experienced flooding in the past, but those were nothing compared to the latest deluge.

“The deepest flood that we have experienced here was the one when the water reached chest-deep. The flood the other night chased us to the roof of our houses, drowning many children,” he said.

Engineer Gerry Pedrico, chief meteorologist of Pagasa, said the heavy downpour was caused by the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ).

He said the rainfall was not evenly distributed in the city during the floods because their rain gauge indicated 8 millimeters of rainfall at the Davao International Airport, Another indicated 50-60 mm of rainfall in Bago Oshiro, a community far from downtown.

“The clouds were concentrated in that area,” Pedrico said.

The environment group Interface for Development Intervention (Idis) blamed the small watershed area left in Matina, saying forest destruction had made it vulnerable to floods.

“Matina, which has the smallest remaining watershed in the city, will always be prone to flash floods,” said Lia Esquillo, Idis executive director.

No efficient drainage plans

“You have a city which has very poor watershed management planning. Then, you have a poorly regulated ‘development,’” she said, referring to subdivisions and other development activities “sprouting all over the city without efficient drainage plans.”

She also said the city had a poor solid waste management plans and a huge population living near the rivers.

Development projects in the Matina watershed should be regulated so that instead of subdivisions, the upland areas should be planted with more trees to increase its capacity to hold water, Esquillo said.

Mayor Sara Duterte said the flood could not be attributed to the drainage system—which has been cited on many occasions as cause of flooding in Davao, especially downtown.

“It was apparently caused by the overflowing of the river as caused by the intense thunderstorm,” Duterte said.

Massive development

Mascarinas said the water could have been brought by the massive development that stripped forest covers of the upland areas.

“There are ongoing construction of subdivisions left and right and around us. Not far from here, a subdivision is being constructed. Maybe this is the result of all of these developments happening around us,” he said.

And as people continue to search for answers, families, rescuers and authorities are still looking for the missing.

As of yesterday noon, the death toll was 27. Mayor Duterte said the number could exceed 30 as 14 more are missing.

Search and rescue teams in rubber boats were combing the Davao River yesterday.

Duterte said the city had allocated P51 million for the calamity fund to pay for food, funeral assistance and rehabilitation of the victims.

She said an aide of President Aquino called her up to ask what Malacañang could do to help.

“I said there is no need since we can manage,” she said.

Germelina Lacorte, Jeffrey M. Tupas and Dennis Jay Santos, Inquirer Mindanao