Talisay exposed to ‘Habagat’

TALISAY City is prone to wave surges because it doesn’t have an island in front of it shielding it from strong waves, said Oscar Tabada, chief of the Mactan station of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).

He said Talisay City’s open coast is vulnerable to storm surges during the southwest monsoon or habagat unlike other areas in Cebu like Naga City where an island serves as a wave breaker.

Tabada told Cebu Daily News he has repeatedly advised Talisay’s engineering department to put up ‘jackstones’ or concrete wave breakers in front of the dikes to lessen the impact of big waves.

Almost every year, Talisay City is slammed by big waves which damage the concrete sea wall.

“Residents should be vigilant especially during high tide,” Tabada said.

Big waves pummeling the coast of Talisay City may continue up to the end of the month.

In November, Tabada said when the wind direction shifts to the northeast monsoon, Talisay City will be shielded by Mactan island.

Aside from scattered rainfall in Metro Cebu last Sunday evening and typhoon Ramil affecting the northern part of the country, there was nothing unusual in the weather in the Visayas.

Big waves fanned by inclement weather however, battered at least five coastal barangays in Talisay City, displacing about 500 households.

The weather system affecting the Visayas and Mindanao and bringing above normal rainfall and big waves is the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ).

As of 4 p.m. yesterday, the weather bureau spotted a low pressure area (LPA) which could develop into a storm 952 kilometers east of Virac, Catanduanes.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) warned of choppy seas but did not stop vessels from sailing last night.

Commander Weniel Azcuna, chief of the PCG Cebu Station, said sea travel could be uncomfortable due to rough seas.

Limitations

Meanwhile, an official of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR-7) said coastal areas in Cebu and Central Visayas are generally prone to wave surges.

Ed Llamedo, DENR-7 spokesman, said the public should should heed weather advisories to be safe.

He said the geo-hazard maps produced by the DENR don’t reflect risks related to wave surges.

In fact, the coastal barangays in Talisay affected by the wave surge last Sunday, like barangay Dumlog, Poblacion and Cansojong are classified by the DENR in the geo-hazard map as moderately susceptible to flooding.  /BenCyrus G. Ellorin and Christine Emily L. Pantaleon