Residents of Minglanilla town and Talisay City were caught unprepared by the waterspout and whirlwind that damaged close to 50 homes Tuesday afternoon.
After the Oklahoma tornado in the United States, the threat of twisters seemed all the more something far away.
Twisters are not unheard of in the country, but this one had the force of 1990 typhoon Ruping. A a YouTube video posted hours after the incident drove home the reality that Cebu isn’t exempted from being swept up by this weather phenomenon.
Clocking in at 200 km per hour, the whirlwind tore off entire roofs, smashed houses and uprooted trees, recalling the force of 1990 typhoon Ruping which devastated Cebu province and led to massive rebuilding.
Incubated in a thunderstorm, which is expected to occur again this week and the rest of the rainy season, the whirlwind originated out at sea.
As it moved inland, it increased in strength until it unleashed its full power over Minglanilla and Talisay.
Thankfully Tuesday’s whirlwind was not as destructive as the tornado this year that barreled its way through Oklahoma and took only 16 minutes to destroy everything in its path.
But it did damage houses and left residents scared and in desperate need of assistance.
Whirlwinds aren’t as frequent occurences as heavy rains and heat waves to warrant an early warning system to be set up by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).
There was no early warning to pack up and hide last Tuesday.
This is part of the reality of Climate Change, where more intense storms and wacky weather patterns have become the new normal.
This also underscores the need to have emergency response systems and a corps of well-trained, well equipped emergency responders, whether volunteers or civil servants.
Long-running efforts to mount a unified system in Cebu City should be a priority for the whole metropolis – or Mega Cebu – considering the concentration of population in urban areas.
This ought to be a top agenda for the incoming set of elected officials who take over on June 30.
With a special law in place mandating local governments to set aside 5 per cent of their development funds for disaster mitigation and response, this should be a top priority.
It’s never too late for Cebuanos to prepare contingencies.
It’s also an opportune time for local officials to assess their capabilities in handling calamities and preparing the people for destructive acts of nature.