Typhoon threatens northern Philippines
PHILIPPINES: Typhoon Lupit hovered just off the tip of the
northern Philippines, bringing huge waves and strong winds with a threat
of landslides, the chief government forecaster said on Friday.
The typhoon, known locally as “Ramil”, had slowed but was still
expected to cross the north of the main Luzon island on Sunday, said
Cruz, although he also held out hope the unpredictable storm might still
turn away from the country.
“Typhoon Ramil is almost stationary over the northern tip of Cagayan
province,” he told reporters.
This meant that the northernmost provinces of Cagayan and Ilocos
Norte would continue to experience bad weather such as strong wind and
rain, according to Cruz.
“(So) we cannot dismiss the risk of landslides because for two weeks,
the land has been soaked,” he said He said the typhoon was stuck between
two high-pressure areas that were keeping it from moving faster.
Weather stations in Hong Kong and Japan said Lupit would make a sharp
turn northwards, away from the Philippines.
But Cruz said this had not yet been confirmed, while warning that the
storm and the high-pressure areas were all “erratic”, making definite
forecasts impossible.
As of 8:00 am (0000 GMT) Friday, Lupit was 110 kilometres (68.2
miles) east of Aparri town in Cagayan province, with wind gusts reaching
150 kilometres per hour, the weather station said.
The government civil defence office said a concrete seawall had
collapsed in Aparri due to strong waves brought by Lupit. Defence
Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, who is also in charge of disaster
preparedness, said the government was continuing to monitor the storm
for any change in its movement.
“We really plan for the worst case scenario,” he said in a radio
interview.
People in coastal fishing towns and other vulnerable areas had
already been evacuated from their homes, while relief and rescue
supplies had been stocked in the north in the event Lupit hits.
Lupit’s imminent arrival comes after tropical storms Ketsana and
Parma caused massive destruction across the northern Philippines from
September 26.
Over 900 people were killed by Ketsana and Parma due to flooding and
landslides, while over 186,000 people are still in evacuation centres
weeks after the storms left the country, the civil defence office says.
At least 148 other people have died from ensuring water-borne disease
outbreaks in the nation’s capital, Manila, some of which remains
flooded. MANILA, Friday, AFP |
