Typhoon Tino death toll in Cebu hits 158

Local

A WEEK after Typhoon Tino unleashed floods across Cebu, the province is still counting its dead.

At least 158 people have been confirmed killed, and dozens remain missing as rescuers continue clearing debris and searching through mud-choked rivers and buried homes.

As of Monday, Nov. 10, the Cebu Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) reported 85 individuals still missing, more than half of them from Compostela town in northern Cebu, where flash floods from the Cotcot River swept through entire neighborhoods.

Compostela, a first-class municipality about 25 kilometers north of Cebu City, suffered the heaviest casualties, with 56 residents still unaccounted for.

Search teams continue to struggle through collapsed roads and blocked mountain trails, hampering retrieval efforts in remote barangays.

In Balamban town on Cebu’s western coast, where 13 residents were confirmed dead, at least 16 more are still being sought.

The town remains under continuous clearing operations, as landslides and flood debris have cut off access to several upland villages.

Cebu City, the provincial capital, is also grappling with the aftermath. Thirty-six people have died and six others remain missing, most of them from riverside communities where water levels rose rapidly within minutes.

Provincial authorities said all 53 local government units of Cebu have been placed under a state of calamity, freeing emergency funds for rescue, relief, and recovery.

According to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), Typhoon Tino (international name Kalmaegi) brought unprecedented rainfall over Cebu and other parts of the Visayas from November 3 to 4.

Weather monitoring stations in Lapu-Lapu and Danao recorded 183 millimeters of rainfall within 24 hours, equivalent to nearly a month and a half’s worth of precipitation.

In Toledo City’s mountain barangays, the downpour was even heavier: 428 mm in Bagakay and 300 mm in Ilihan, amounts comparable to the rainfall brought by Tropical Storm Ondoy in 2009.

Pagasa said the observed rainfall exceeded a “20-year return period,” meaning there was only a 5 percent chance of such an extreme event occurring in any given year.

Most of the rain fell in the early hours of November 4, shortly after Tino made landfall in Southern Leyte and later in Borbon, northern Cebu.

The volume of water overwhelmed river systems and drainage networks, triggering flash floods that inundated homes, roads, and entire subdivisions in Danao, Mandaue, Cebu, and Talisay cities, as well as in the towns of Liloan, Compostela, and Consolacion.

In a local explanatory report, PAGASA Visayas chief Engr. Al Quiblat said Tino marked a “turning point” in Cebu’s weather history, not for its winds, but for its water.

“Tino was worse in terms of rainfall, not in wind,” Quiblat said. “Here in Cebu City, we recorded maximum winds of 90 kilometers per hour. During Typhoon Odette in 2021, it was 165 kph. But when it comes to rainfall, Tino poured much more, 183 millimeters, compared to Odette’s less than 100.”

Only Super Typhoon Ruping in 1990 dumped more rain over Cebu, with 270 mm in 24 hours. But Quiblat noted that the resulting floods from Tino were far more destructive despite lesser rainfall, suggesting environmental factors have worsened flood risks over time.

“Tino ang pinaka-worst sa flooding so far in Cebu,” he said. “Kung tan-awon ang kadaghanon sa ulan, dili mo justify. So naay laing factors, nausab na gyud ang environment nato.”

He cited unchecked urbanization, river obstruction, and the loss of natural drainage systems as key contributors.

PAGASA also attributed the intense rainfall to La Niña–like conditions over the Pacific, which enhanced moisture in the atmosphere.

“Above-normal rain conditions gyud ang outlook ana kay init ang kadagatan,” Quiblat explained. “While not yet a full-blown La Niña, the warmer sea surface temperatures during Tino’s passage made rainfall heavier and more persistent.”

Experts have since urged the public and local governments to strengthen flood mitigation efforts, enhance early warning systems, and prepare for the growing intensity of tropical cyclones linked to climate variability.

“Every typhoon is different, so we must always prepare for the worst,” Quiblat said.(TGP)