Philippines warns of super typhoon Manyi with ‘potentially catastrophic damage’
The military helped evacuate villagers from areas threatened by Typhoon Manyi.
A super typhoon heading towards the Philippines is gaining strength on Saturday, putting millions at risk of storm surge and having a “potentially devastating” impact, the state said. weather forecasters warned.
More than 650,000 people have been evacuated from their homes ahead of super typhoon Manyi, which is expected to make landfall late Saturday or early Sunday, making it the sixth major storm to hit the archipelago nation in the past month.
With wind gusts of up to 240 kilometers per hour (about 149 miles per hour), Mani was a super typhoon, meaning it was “near peak intensity” and was on track to hit the sparsely populated island of Catanduanes, the weather bureau warned.
“Super Typhoon Pepito is further intensifying, looming in northeast Bicol with potentially catastrophic and life-threatening conditions,” forecasters said in their latest update, using the storm’s local name. He said he was referring to the southern part of the main island of Luzon. .
Waves of up to 14 meters (46 feet) are expected around Catanduanes, putting more than 7.6 million people at risk of storm surges of 1 to 3 meters, forecasters said.
Five storms have hit the Philippines in recent weeks, killing at least 163 people, leaving thousands homeless and wiping out crops and livestock.
The government on Saturday urged people to heed warnings to flee to safety.
“If a pre-emptive evacuation is necessary, let us do so rather than waiting for the moment of danger to evacuate or call for help. Doing so will not only put our lives at risk, but also the lives of our rescuers.” because it exposes them,” said Interior Undersecretary Marlo Iringan.
In Albay province, Myrna Perea, a grocer from Legazpi City, took refuge in a school classroom with nine other families after she and her husband, a fruit vendor, and their three children were ordered to leave their shack. was.
A man places sandbags on the roof of his home in Legazpi ahead of Typhoon Manyi’s expected landfall.
Conditions were hot and cramped, and on Friday night the family slept together on mats beneath the classroom’s single ceiling fan, but Perea said it was better to be safe.
“Our house is made of light materials, so I think it will collapse when we return. It only takes two gusts of wind to bring it down,” Perea, 44, told AFP.
“That’s why we evacuated. Even if our house was destroyed, the important thing is not to lose our family.”
Scientists have warned that climate change will make storms more intense, with more heavy rain, flash flooding and gusty winds.
Approximately 20 major storms and typhoons strike the Southeast Asian country and its surrounding waters every year, killing many people, but it is rare for multiple such weather phenomena to occur within a small window. .
Forced evacuation, ban on going out
Evacuation centers were full on Catanduanes Island in the typhoon-prone Bicol region, and weather forecasters warned of “widespread severe flooding and landslides.”
More than 400 people were crammed into the state building in the capital Virac, and new arrivals were sent to a gymnasium, state disaster official Roberto Monterolla told AFP.
Monterolla said soldiers were sent to force about 100 families in two coastal villages near Virac to move inland because of fears that storm surge could flood their homes.
A photo distributed by the Ubariu village Polangi office’s Facebook page shows evacuated residents taking shelter inside a shopping mall.
“Regardless of the exact landfall location, heavy rain, strong winds, and storm surge are likely to occur in areas other than the expected landfall location,” the forecaster said.
The mayor of Naga City, Camarines Sur province, has imposed a curfew starting at noon on Saturday, forcing residents to shelter indoors.
“Back to square one”
Rey Josiah Ekano, disaster officer for Northern Samar province, lamented that the damage caused by the typhoon is the root cause of poverty in the region.
“Every time a typhoon like this comes, we are taken back to medieval times and back to square one,” Echano told AFP as the ministry prepared for Man’yi’s onslaught.
All vessels, from fishing boats to oil tankers, were ordered to remain in port or return to shore.
The coast guard closed 55 ports, leaving about 4,000 people stranded.
The Volcano Authority also warned that the heavy rains dumped by Mr. Manyi could trigger volcanic deposits, or lahars, from three volcanoes, including Taal south of Manila.
Manyi hits the Philippines in the latter half of the typhoon season. Most cyclones occur between July and October.
Four storms formed simultaneously in the Pacific Basin earlier this month, but the Japan Meteorological Agency told AFP on Saturday that it was the first time such storms had been observed in November since records began in 1951.
© 2024 AFP
Source: Philippines warns of “potentially catastrophic” Super Typhoon Manyi (2024, November 16) https://phys.org/news/2024-11-philippines-potentially-catastrophic-super-typhoon Retrieved November 16, 2024 from .html
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