Monsoon Rains Trigger Widespread Floods Across Luzon; Seven Dead

Courtesy: DOST-PAGASA

Heavy, non-stop torrential rains whipped up by the enhanced Southwest Monsoon (Habagat) and recent tropical depressions have triggered massive flash floods and landslides across Luzon, leaving at least seven people dead and displacing thousands of families.

The state weather bureau PAGASA raised a Red Rainfall Warning over Metro Manila, Bataan, Cavite, and adjacent provinces, warning of severe, life-threatening inundation in low-lying communities.

Casualties and Displacements Mount

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) and local authorities confirmed that the death toll has climbed to seven. Weather-related fatalities include:

• Landslides and Rockslides: Two victims died when a landslide buried an eatery in La Trinidad, Benguet, while a rockslide killed two siblings in Rodriguez, Rizal.
• Drownings and Accidents: Drowning incidents were recorded in Candon City (Ilocos Sur), Luna (La Union), and Alaminos City (Pangasinan), alongside an electrocution fatality in La Union.

The severe weather systems—magnified by the back-to-back impacts of tropical storms Luis and Maymay—have affected over 74,000 families across Luzon. More than 7,000 displaced individuals are currently crammed into emergency evacuation centers.

Commuter Gridlock and Agricultural Losses

In Metro Manila, floodwaters rapidly swamped major thoroughfares, causing deep inundations along Taft Avenue, the EDSA P. Tuazon tunnel, and areas of Las Piñas, rendering several routes impassable to light vehicles. According to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), water levels fluctuated from gutter-deep to knee-deep, though some areas saw brief temporary reprieves when rainfall paused.

Outside the capital, flash floods devastated rural economies, completely submerging agricultural lands including the famous strawberry farms in La Trinidad, Benguet. Multiple structural arteries, including overflow bridges in Isabela and portions of the National Highway in Nueva Ecija, remain entirely cut off.

Prolonged Rainfall Expected

PAGASA warned that even though Tropical Storm Maymay has dissipated into a low-pressure area, the enhanced monsoon will continue to dump heavy to intense rainfall over western Luzon and the Ilocos Region through the coming days. The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) has urged nearly 9,000 vulnerable barangays nationwide to prepare for ongoing threats of flash floods and sudden mudslides.