Over 100 homes damaged by micro-tornado in Iloilo City

Workers remove fallen branches and debris at Jaro Plaza in Iloilo City on Aug. 9, 2026, following the strong winds that battered parts the city the previous night. PHOTO BY RJAY ZURIAGA CASTOR

ILOILO CITY — At least 101 houses were damaged and 148 families, or 587 individuals, were affected after what disaster officials believed was a micro-tornado that swept through parts of this city on Saturday night.

The Iloilo City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) reported Monday that four houses were totally damaged and 97 partially damaged across 12 barangay.

The affected villages were Desamparados, Benedicto, Seminario, Calubihan, CC-EL 98, Balabago, Cubay, Tabuc Suba, Gustilo, Q. Abeto, Onate de Leon and Taft North in the Jaro and Mandurriao districts.

Cubay recorded the highest number of affected residents with 60 families or 231 individuals, followed by CC-EL 98 with 17 families or 85 individuals, Q. Abeto with 16 families or 74 individuals, and Balabago with 12 families or 41 individuals.

The city opened three evacuation centers at the Desamparados Barangay Hall, Balabago Child Development Center, and Cubay Barangay Gym.

Of the affected population, 71 families or 256 individuals were staying at the evacuation centers, while 77 families or 331 individuals temporarily stayed elsewhere.

Darwin Joemil Papa, head of the CDRRMO's Disaster Response Division, said the agency is leaning toward a micro-tornado based on the pattern and extent of damage observed, although the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) has yet to make a final determination.

“Notwithstanding the final assessment of Pagasa, based only on the experiential evidence and the evidence we gathered and its effects, we are leaning more toward the possibility that it was a micro-tornado,” Papa said.

He said the disturbance appeared to have started in the Q. Abeto area in Mandurriao before moving toward Megaworld and Taft North and passing through Calubihan, the Jaro Public Market, Jaro Cathedral and Jaro Plaza, before reaching Benedicto, Cubay and Balabago.

Papa said the relatively narrow path of damage was one of the factors considered by the CDRRMO in assessing the event as a possible tornado rather than a downburst.

“We also noticed that the effect was very narrow. When it passed through Jaro Plaza, the center portion was affected while the sides were not as severely affected,” he said.

“Still, we will defer to and wait for the final decision of Pagasa,” Papa said.

He warned that similar weather disturbances could occur during thunderstorms, particularly during periods of heavy rain and the southwest monsoon.

“The danger is that whenever we have a thunderstorm during heavy rains, and the habagat season, we cannot discount the possibility of a downburst or tornado,” he said, adding that such phenomena could occur over land or at sea.

A tornado consists of rotating winds that converge inward toward a narrow track, often producing localized or swirling damage, while a downburst is a powerful downdraft that hits the ground and spreads outward, usually creating broader straight-line damage with objects falling in similar directions.

Meanwhile, the city government on Monday released financial assistance to families whose houses were damaged by the weather event.

Four families whose houses were totally damaged received P10,000 each, while 97 families with partially damaged houses received P5,000 each.

City Mayor Raisa Treñas said the immediate release of assistance was intended to help affected families purchase construction materials and begin repairs.

“It is important that they do not have to wait any longer. That is why we immediately released the financial assistance so they can use it to buy materials and start repairing their houses,” Treñas-Chu said.