Review of Related Literature

Tropical Storm Sendong entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility on December 15,
2011, according from the final report of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and
Management Council, as the tropical cyclone that entered to the Philippine in 2011,
according to the reports of. It entered, however, as a tropical depression and eventually
became a tropical storm. It made landfall at the vicinity of Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur in
the afternoon of 16 Dec 2011 and traversed the provinces of Agusan del Sur, Bukidnon
and Misamis Oriental, and the cities of Cagayan de Oro and El Salvador before
midnight and caused torrential rains that led to widespread and catastrophic flooding in
cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan cities. It also made another landfall at the vicinity of
Puerto Princesa City, Palawan before it exited out of the country on Dec 18, 2011.

According to the Scientific Research and Risk Assessment Committee chaired by DOS,
light to moderate rains were recorded as TS Sendong entered PAR, while moderate to
heavy rains during its passage as manifested by rainfall observations at different time-
scale. They quoted, "The intense rainfall in the upstream portion of the CDO river basin
flowed in a river gorge resulting to strong current uprooted trees and undermined and
scoured river banks. The muddy water full of sediment and debris flowed downstream
and washed out the islets of Isla de Oro and Isla Verde which are located on sandbars,
which the accumulation of sediment through the years every time flooding occurs within
the area. The development along the river banks also constricted the flow of flood water
to the river mouth. The combined effects of heavy rains that occurred in the upstream
parts of the CDO river basin in the evening of 16 Dec until early morning of 17
December, the occurrence of high tide which restricted the flow of flood waters, the
steep topography of the catchment, and the debris into the river exacerbated the impact
of flash flood that contributed to the disaster."

Mindanao is not usually hit by typhoons. With this in mind, warnings from the Philippine
Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), were
not taken seriously by residents living near major rivers in the island. Citizens were
caught off guard when it started to flood. On the account of Mary Cris Dalay, the 13-
year-old survivor, recalls is that it was dark and cold, and they were fighting for their
lives as the raging waters of Cagayan River swept their house, with 6 people, out in the
open sea. Exhausted after floating in the water overnight, she fell asleep and woke up
at dawn to find herself almost 100 kilometers away on another island, in the province of
Camiguin. She survived but her mother and two siblings didn’ t. They were still missing
to this very day.

There is a particular theory whereas one of the contributors of the flashflood is due to
the collapse of the landslide dams. This quote is from a news conference given by
DoST Secretary Mario G. Montejo:

“ PAGASA had been doing its job conscientiously,” Montejo said. “ In fact, places such
as Bohol, Surigao, and Camiguin that heeded PAGASA’ s warning and took
appropriate actions had mitigated the effects of Sendong.” Montejo, who was with
President Benigno “ Noynoy” Aquino III when he visited areas severely flooded by
“ Sendong,” also said that the flashflood that killed and harmed hundreds of people in
Northern Mindanao and southern Visayas as was aggravated by the reported collapse
of dams along the Cagayan de Oro River.
“ It is most likely that the flashfloods in Cagayan de Oro were caused not only simply by
the big volume of rain that fell in the watershed of rivers in those places, but essentially
of the reported collapse of dams in the upper parts of the rivers,” Montejo said.

Reports from the field that reached the presidential party on the collapse of the dams
are being investigated, per instructions of the President, he said. Montejo said that the
continuous rains may have caused the accumulation and build-up of water upstream of
the dam.

“ At some point, the dams may have collapsed when the trapped water filled with debris
overtopped the dam. This could have led to dam breakage and failure,” he said.
“ When the large volume of water trapped behind the landslide debris dams was
released, it triggered the flashfloods. The landslide dam-break mechanism caused the
flash floods, which would explain the sudden surge of water reported by survivors in
Cagayan de Oro,” Montejo said.
Montejo pointed out that survivors described the flashfloods as “ sudden surge” , while
post-disaster pictures showed large amounts of mud and debris, including trees, carried
by the raging flashfloods. He also clarified that although the rainfall dumped by
“ Sendong” was not like that of typhoon “ Ondoy” that generated 181 mm of rain for
one day that caused the disastrous flashfloods in 2009. The landslide dam break that
happened in “ Sendong” had happened in 2004 in Infanta, Quezon and in 2008 in Iloilo,
he said.
References

NDRRMC National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. (2012). Final
Report on the Effects and Emergency Management re Tropical Storm “ SENDONG”
(Washi). Retrieved from:
http://www.ndrrmc.gov.ph/attachments/article/1347/Final_Report_on_the_Effects_and_
Emergency_Management_re_Tropical_Storm_SENDONG_(WASHI)_Status_of_Early_
Recovery_Programs_in_Region_X_issued_10FEB2014.pdf

Petley,D. (2011). The Philippine Tropical Storm Washi (Sendong) disaster may have
been due to the collapse of landslide dams? Retrieved from:
https://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2011/12/24/the-philippine-tropical-storm-washi-
sendong-disaster-may-have-been-due-to-the-collapse-of-landslide-dams/