Cagayan folk moved early as Siony gains strength
MANILA, Philippines — Tropical Storm Siony (international name: Atsani) may intensify into a typhoon before making landfall on Friday, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said on Tuesday.
While there was a high degree of uncertainty in its forecast track, the weather service said Siony was still likely to hit the Batanes or Babuyan Islands by the end of the week.
On Tuesday, the storm began to move slowly toward an east-northeast direction.
Pagasa earlier said the weather system may become almost stationary as it moved over the Philippine Sea this week.
Cagayan may be hit
Senior weather specialist Chris Perez said on Tuesday that considering the probabilities in Siony’s latest forecast track, the storm may also hit parts of Cagayan Valley by the end of the week.
“Not only Batanes and Babuyan Islands should be ready for the storm, but Cagayan Valley should also be prepared, Perez said.
“As Siony crosses Luzon in the following days, several areas [in northern Luzon] may be under a storm warning signal,” he added.
As of 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Siony’s center was estimated at 620 kilometers east of Basco town, Batanes province. The storm carried maximum winds of 85 km per hour near the center and gusts of up to 105 kph.
Pagasa said Cagayan Valley, Cordillera Administrative Region and Ilocos region may experience cloudy skies with light rains due to the northeasterly surface windflow.
Meanwhile, Tropical Storm “Rolly” (international name: Goni) continued to move west toward the boundary of the Philippine territory.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Rolly was 560 km west of Subic, Zambales province.
Evacuation in Calayan
In the town of Calayan, Cagayan Valley, the local government began the preemptive evacuation of 250 families on Tuesday in expectation of a hit from Siony.
Calayan Mayor Joseph Llopis said the local government had prepared enough food and drinking water for the evacuees, who were taken from their houses in danger zones.
The Department of Trade and Industry in Cagayan Valley said prices of basic goods and prime commodities in the region remained stable despite Typhoons “Pepito” (Saudel) and “Quinta” (Molave), which left at least P60 million in damage to agriculture and infrastructure.
—With a report from Villamor Visaya Jr.
