IN LAPU-LAPU CITY Torrential rains trigger flood, monstrous traffic

Heavy rains on the first day of December left several areas in Lapu-Lapu City flooded on Monday morning, disrupting daily routines and causing hours-long traffic jams, particularly for commuters, motorists, and residents in lowlying communities.

- - Kristin de Dios/FPL

Floodwaters quickly rose in parts of Barangays Basak, Ibo, and Buaya, among the hardest hit by the sudden downpour. Videos and posts online showed vehicles struggling to pass through submerged streets, prompting public criticism and calls for faster government action.

According to PAGASA Mactan weather specialist Joseph Merlas, the flooding was triggered by severe thunderstorms associated with the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), which shifted over the Visayas and intensified cloud formation over Lapu-Lapu City.

Merlas said the city experienced torrential rains amounting to 114 millimeters within just three hours—an unusually high volume even in the absence of a typhoon. The same weather system brought intense rainfall to parts of Cordova and Mandaue City.

PAGASA noted that the 114mm rainfall was equivalent to around 570,000 drums of water per square kilometer, overwhelming drainage systems and causing rapid flooding.

"Kusug-kusug gyud to siya," Merlas said, emphasizing that such rainfall within a short span is uncommon and significantly stronger than typical localized thunderstorms.

Despite Monday's severe weather, Merlas clarified that conditions are expected to improve. For December 2 and the next three days, PAGASA forecasts warmer and clearer weather in Cebu as the ITCZ shifts southward toward Mindanao.