'SENDONG' CAME IN DEAD OF NIGHT
[PHOTO - LIFELINE. Two residents and a
rescuer hold on to a rope as they wade through waist-deep floodwaters in Cagayan
de Oro City at the height of the flash floods that swept through the region on
Friday night. They were the lucky ones. At least 200 others did not last the
night. Cagayan de Oro was the center of the storm, 23 of its barangays were
submerged in floodwaters. AP]
MANILA, DECEMBER 18, 2011 (INQUIRER) Inquirer Mindanao
1:32 am - Sendong" came in the dead of night, tearing through swaths of
Mindanao not usually in the path of storms, inundating houses up to the rooftops
and drowning scores of sleeping residents in the most destructive calamity to
hit the South in years.
At press time, the number of dead had risen to 436, the Philippine Red Cross
(PRC) said.
PRC Secretary General Gwen Pang said the latest toll on Saturday was based on
a body count in funeral parlors. She said 215 died in the city of Cagayan de Oro
and 144 in nearby Iligan, and the rest in several other southern and central
provinces, including Zamboanga del Norte and Compostela Valley.
Many of them were women and children confirmed killed in floods and
landslides spawned by Sendong.
[PHOTO - Rescuers hold on to a rope as they form a human chain to
rescue 32 passengers and crew of the ill-fated M/V Ever Transport III, which
sank after running aground off Sitio (sub-village) Candayong, Barangay (village)
Calindagan, Dumaguete City at…]
The Inquirer bureau in Mindanao, based on reports as of 10 p.m. also from
funeral parlors, estimated the dead to be over 300.
The Visayas was not spared, with the tropical storm leaving at least 22
persons dead and 14 missing in Negros Oriental.
(For updates, go to Inquirer.net, tune in to Radyo Inquirer 990AM, or text ON
INQ BREAKING to 4467.)
Many others remained missing in these areas, officials said.
Cagayan de Oro was at the center of the storm, which could explain why it
suffered the most—23 flooded barangays in all, officials said. As much as 180
millimeters of rain fell on the city early Saturday, according to the weather
bureau.
The rains triggered floodwaters more than a meter deep, and 95 people have
been confirmed dead in the city alone, Col. Leopoldo Galon, spokesperson of the
military's Eastern Mindanao Command based in Davao City, said earlier Saturday.
Galon said soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division helped in the recovery of
the bodies. Twenty of the victims, many of them children, were found in Tambo,
one of the barangays lining the swollen Cagayan de Oro River.
Warning ignored
"Complacency" among Iligan and Cagayan de Oro residents unfamiliar with such
levels of rainfall is to blame for the high death toll, Office of Civil Defense
Administrator Benito Ramos said in Manila.
Emil Raña, local government operations officer of Cagayan de Oro, said 22
barangays went under water starting late Friday night until 2 a.m. Saturday. The
floods were worsened by the high tide, he said.
Oro Alert head Armin Cuenca said residents had been warned early on of the
risk of flooding but many refused to leave their homes. He said this worsened
the situation when the floodwaters started rising.
Among those who were trapped in their homes in Barangay Tambo were members of
the Cabillo family.
Bryan Cabillo said his wife and three children were swept by floodwaters from
their home late Friday. He said his efforts to save them proved futile as he too
struggled against the strong current.
Senior Insp. Elmer Decena of the Northern Mindanao Regional Public Safety
Battalion said rubber boats had to be used to rescue residents starting at 2
a.m., when the floods were at their worst.
Decena said among the bodies that were immediately retrieved were those of
family members of a Caucasian surnamed Frierson.
Worse this time
In Iligan City, at least 81 people were killed, among them broadcaster Enie
Alzonado of Radyo Mo Nationwide, Mayor Lawrence Cruz said.
He said the floods were worse this time because even areas never flooded in
the past were inundated, some more than 1 meter deep. From the National Disaster
Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) report, at least 24 barangays
were affected.
"In the flooded districts, houses were either underwater or washed away. Many
families had to be rescued from the roofs of their houses," Cruz said.
With the floodwaters having subsided, search and rescue efforts can proceed
unimpeded, he said.
81 bodies in beaches
[PHOTO - Debris are scattered near destroyed houses in Cagayan de Oroon
December18, 2011, a day after Typhoon Washi (SENDONG) wrought havoc in the city.
Philippine rescuers strived with mud, fatigue and the stench of death Sunday,
December 18, 2011]
The 81 bodies were found in the beaches of Kauswagan in Lanao del Norte,
Manticao in Misamis Oriental and Iligan Bay. More than 10 survivors, were
plucked from the sea by rescuers, according to Alan Padilla, team leader of the
rescue unit of the Iligan City Disaster Risk Riduction Council.
Lt. Col. Randolph Cabangbang, spokesperson of the Western Mindanao Command
based in Zamboanga City, said soldiers had been deployed to help in the
search-and-rescue operations.
Cabangbang said many Iligan residents, a large number of them children, were
still on the roofs of their houses when the soldiers arrived early Saturday.
There was still no power and water services in Cagayan de Oro as of Saturday
afternoon, and some 20,000 people were being housed in at least 10 evacuation
centers, according to Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman.
In Iligan, "thousands" have been displaced but the actual number is still
being determined, Mayor Cruz said.
The Iligan Bloggers Society has started a fund drive for the flood victims.
Donors may send cash but canned goods, packed food and clothing are preferred,
the group said. (For details, log on to http://t.co/9JEEYwGT)
In gold rush area
In Monkayo, Compostela Valley, five people were confirmed killed in a series
of landslides that hit the gold-rich area of Mt. Diwata, according to municipal
information officer Joan Pintal.
The dead included a 57-year-old woman, three children aged 4, 6 and 14, and a
28-year-old miner, Pintal told the Inquirer by phone.
She said Rosita dela Peña and her wards—Ashlia, Nasser and Rakema Tuan—and
miner Julito Lumactod were killed in the landslides that hit Nang district at
past 4 p.m. on Friday.
Six other landslides also hit other parts of Mt. Diwata between 4 p.m. and 5
p.m., burying houses and displacing some 90 families, Pintal said.
In the lowland barangay of Baylo, 15 houses were destroyed and seven people
were injured as the Baylo River overflowed and swamped the community, she said.
The local government of Monkayo has dispatched assistance to the victims.
Rescuers were assisted by members of the Army's 25th Infantry Battalion.
In Zamboanga del Norte, Gov. Rolando Yebes said three drowned in the floods
that swamped barangays in Dapitan and Polanco on Thursday, when Sendong's fury
was initially felt.
The floods "reached past a man's height" and were worsened by the high tide,
Yebes said by phone.
2 rivers overflowed
In the Visayas, floods hit Dumaguete City and the towns of Sibulan and
Valencia after the Ocoy and Banica Rivers overflowed.
Six persons were killed, including two children in Sibulan. They were Miguel
Angel Diputado, 5; Rachel Calijan, 33; Eric Camporedondo, 20; Marsha Rodriguez;
a 2-year-old girl; and another unidentified person.
A bridge connecting Barangays Palinpinon and Balabag in Valencia was damaged.
Residents living on the Banica riverbank suddenly found their homes engulfed
by floodwaters, prompting their evacuation to higher ground. Others saw their
homes swept away by the raging river.
Dikes that were built to protect residential communities also gave way,
prompting residents of Habitat for Humanity homes to evacuate to public
buildings and churches.
Many parts of Negros Oriental were also powerless for most of the day as
trees felled power lines.
Dumaguete Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria said that on Friday, he put all rescue
workers and social services on alert in preparation for the storm.
Cargo vessel
Sendong also caused a cargo vessel to capsize in shallow waters.
All 32 passengers and crew of MV Ever Transport III of Kheri Lins Inc. were
rescued by the Philippine Coast Guard and other groups who arrived 30 minutes
after the vessel sent a distress signal.
The nine passengers—one of them a 2-year-old boy—were family members of the
crew members.
"Some of our wives and family members came along because it's Christmas,"
said the ship captain, Romeo Cuevas.
The ship, carrying beer and soft drinks, was headed for Tagbilaran City in
Bohol to deliver its cargo. It was to head back to Cagayan de Oro but was
stranded in Dumaguete because of the storm.
Cuevas said the ship was pulling out from the seaport in Barangay Looc for
shelter at around 4 a.m. when its starboard side hit the pier after being
battered by big waves.
The vessel lost power and was swept ashore in Barangay Calindagan about 1
kilometer away, where it ran aground and then capsized.
Cuevas said the ship would be salvaged and dry-docked.
Moving away
The NDRRMC said that as of 4 a.m. on Saturday, Sendong was 20 km west
northwest of Cagayan de Oro with maximum winds of 65 km per hour, and was moving
toward the Palawan area.
The rain has stopped in many areas of Mindanao although drizzles were still
being reported in the northern and eastern parts of the island late Saturday.
The storm was moving west at 22 kph and was expected to be 140 km southwest
of Puerto Princesa City by today. By Monday morning, Sendong will be 430 km west
southwest of Puerto Princesa or out of the Philippine area of responsibility,
the NDRRMC.
With reports from Allan Nawal, JB Deveza, Bobby Lagsa,
Richel Umel, Ryan Rosauro, Julie Alipala, Frinston Lim and Dennis Jay Santos,
Inquirer Mindanao; Alex V. Pal, Inquirer Visayas; DJ Yap in Manila, and AP
First posted 12:22 am | Sunday, December 18th, 2011
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2011 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
All
rights reserved
PHILIPPINE
HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE [PHNO] WEBSITE
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/phnotweet
This is the PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE (PHNO) Mailing List.
To stop receiving our news items, please send a blank e-mail addressed to: phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
Please visit our homepage at: http://www.newsflash.org/
(c) Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
-------------------------------------------------------------Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/phno/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/phno/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
phno-digest@yahoogroups.com
phno-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
