Supertyphoon threatens PH

By: Dona Z. Pazzibugan - 10 years ago

noah.dost.gov.ph/

A powerful typhoon that destroyed homes in Micronesia is moving straight to the Philippines and is expected to make landfall in Luzon on Easter Sunday, typhoon tracks plotted by several countries in the Asia-Pacific showed.

The National Weather Service on the island of Chuuk, part of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), said on Tuesday afternoon that Typhoon “Maysak’’ was expected to hit the Philippines on Sunday or Monday.

“Its official track shows it’s headed straight toward Luzon,” meteorologist Derek Williams said.

Malacañang assured the public that “all hands are on deck,” including President Benigno Aquino III, as the typhoon threatens to hit the country.

“As far as the government is concerned, as far as the President is concerned, all hands are on deck, (as) with any expected or unforeseen situations, incidents that may arise during Holy Week,” presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said in a Palace briefing.

Lacierda said the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) and the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) are both expected to provide “timely warnings” on the incoming typhoon.

“At the same time, the NDRRMC is, as you know, is composed of several Cabinet agencies, so all of them have already been informed of the incoming storm and insofar as the roles of each Cabinet agency, they know what to do,” Lacierda said.

Interior Secretary Mar Roxas urged local officials in the Visayas and southern Luzon to prepare for the expected entry of Maysak.

“Our mayors are the first responders. They should man the command centers in their respective localities,” said Roxas, vice chair of the NDRRMC.

“Even if the typhoon is still far off, our leaders should be ready for its possible onslaught,” he said.

Moving west northwest

The typhoon, which will be called “Chedeng” in the Philippines, is forecast to enter the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) on Wednesday.

As of Tuesday, Maysak packed maximum sustained winds of 175 kilometers per hour (kph) and gusts of up to 210 kph while about 1,700 km east of Northern Mindanao. The typhoon is expected to move west northwest at 20 kph.

A cyclone is considered a supertyphoon when its sustained winds reach at least 220 kph, according to Pagasa.

No supertyphoon

While Maysak continued to intensify as it neared PAR, the weather bureau said the cyclone would not hit the Philippines as a supertyphoon.

The typhoon will weaken as it nears the Luzon landmass, according to Pagasa.

“It may further intensify but while it nears land, it will weaken,” Pagasa meteorologist Shelly Ignacio said. “We will not be hit by a supertyphoon.”

Pagasa said the vertical wind shear over Luzon would weaken the incoming cyclone.

Effects by Good Friday

Ignacio said that while the typhoon would enter PAR either late Wednesday or early Thursday, its effects would not be felt until Friday.

The Bicol Region will experience rains, but not stormy weather, by Friday before the cyclone affects northern and Central Luzon for the rest of the weekend, according to Ignacio.

Direct hit

Widespread damage was reported in Chuuk, which suffered a direct hit on Monday.

“Chuuk was devastated,” Kembo Mida, a lawyer in Chuuk, said in an e-mail to the Ayuda Foundation relief organization, which is based in Guam about 1,000 kilometers away.

“Houses were blown away and trees snapped in half. It was very dangerous and scary… a ship sank too.”

The Pacific News Center in Guam said FSM public information officer Marz Akapito “is reporting that five people have died in Chuuk state due to typhoon Maysak.”

Category 5

Maysak was expected to have intensified to a maximum Category 5 storm by the time it hit Yap early Wednesday.

Neville Koop, a meteorologist with Fiji’s Na Draki weather service, said at its peak the typhoon would have winds of 270 kph with gusts up to 340 kph.

“This typhoon will be very destructive,” Koop told AFP. “At its peak Typhoon Maysak will be as strong as Cyclone Pam.”

Pam slammed into Vanuatu over two weeks ago, causing widespread damage and leaving 11 people dead in the South Pacific nation. With reports from Julie M. Aurelio, Nikko Dizon, AFP and AP

Originally posted: 6:32 PM | Tuesday, March 31st, 2015