According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, Tropical Storm Washi pummeled the northern part of the Philippine island of Mindanao late Thursday night. Heavy rainfall from Washi (locally called Sendong) lasted for ten hours, after which flash flooding caused rivers to overflow and coastal cities to flood.
In some locations of Mindanao, as much as 20 centimeters [7.8 inches] of rain fell within a 24 hour period—roughly four times as much rainfall as the region typically receives in the whole of December. In isolated locations, the storm delivered up to 50 millimeters [1.7 inches] of rainfall per hour—about 10 to 20 millimeters more than had been predicted by the region’s local weather agency.
Dr. Peter Sousounis, senior principal scientist at AIR Worldwide, stated: “Washi made landfall as a tropical storm at approximately 09:00 UTC on December 16th (roughly 5pm local time). Maximum sustained winds at landfall were 74 kilometers per hour (46 miles per hour), making Washi a weak tropical storm. “Its maximum sustained winds never exceeded 46 mph during its lifetime. The storm’s most significant threat was precipitation; even prior to making landfall, Washi’s outer rain bands brought heavy rainfall to Mindanao’s northeast coast.”
According to AIR, “Washi’s tropical storm-strength winds are expected to have caused limited damage to roof and wall claddings of poorly constructed homes and commercial structures, and very little damage to well-built structures, though the storm is expected to have caused significant damage to low-rise buildings from precipitation-induced flooding. As flood insurance penetration in the hardest hit regions is low, AIR does not expect significant insured losses from this event.”
AIR added that “the damage picture from Washi is still emerging at this time, but it is clear that the port cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan were most severely impacted. There have been reports of disrupted power lines and flooded streets.”
Source: AIR Worldwide
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