Re: Philippines: Typhoon Juan continues to intensify, increases threats to Northern Luzon
Re: Philippines: Typhoon Juan continues to intensify, increases threats to Northern Luzon
'Juan' Now a Super Typhoon
By ELLALYN B. DE VERA
October 17, 2010, 4:46pm
<!-- CONTENT -->
- Signal No. 4 up in Cagayan, Isabela
- Classes suspended in N. Luzon
- Evacuation begins
- Power grid, rescuers ready
MANILA, Philippines ? Northern Luzon where it is expectedTyphoon ?Juan? (international name: Megi) intensified into a ?super typhoon? as it roared closer to to make landfall this morning, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said Sunday.
Storm Signal No. 4 (winds above 185 kilometers per hour) had already been hoisted in Cagayan and Isabela provinces at 4 p.m. Sunday, said PAGASA Weather Forecasting Section Chief Robert Sawi as ?Juan? packed maximum sustained winds of up to 225 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 260 kph.
Technically, PAGASA does not have a ?super typhoon? category, but Sawi explained that the United States-based Joint Typhoon Warning Center declares a cyclone as a super typhoon when its winds exceed 215 kph near the center.
As of 5 p.m. Sunday, the eye of the typhoon was located at 390 kilometers (km) east of Aparri, Cagayan and moving westward at 22 kilometers per hour (kph).
?There is a 90 percent chance of landfall over the Cagayan area, then it will cross Apayao, and exit Ilocos Norte,? said PAGASA weather forecaster Aldczar Aurelio.
PAGASA projected that the super typhoon would make landfall in Aparri, Cagayan, at 8 a.m. Monday and dump an estimated rainfall of 22 mm/hr.
Sawi said Juan which will be at 100 km east of Aparri or 50 km southeast of Laoag City this afternoon, can possibly exit the country also Monday.
Areas placed Sunday under Signal No. 3 (winds of 101-185 kph is expected in at least 18 hours) were Batanes, Calayan and Babuyan Groups of Islands, Apayao, Kalinga, Mountain Province, Ifugao, Quirino and Northern Aurora.
Signal No. 2 (winds of 61-100 kph is expected in at least 24 hours) was hoisted over Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Abra, La Union, Benguet, Nueva Vizcaya, and the rest of Aurora.
Signal No. 1 (winds of 30-60 kph is expected within the next 36 hours) was raised in Pangasinan, Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, and Polillo Island.
Classes have already been suspended in Regions 1, 2 and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).
PRE-EMPTIVE EVACUATION BEGINS IN CAGAYAN
As this developed, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management
Council or NDRRMC (formerly the National Disaster Coordinating Council) ordered the pre-emptive evacuation of families living in high-risk areas as early as Sunday.
In Tuguegarao City, all families in coastal areas who are expected to be directly affected by the projected landfall the typhoon this morning have begun evacuations.
In a phone interview, Cagayan?s Social Welfare and Development Officer Edna Junio said as of press time that the different rescue groups are busy helping the local residents in going to the designated preemptive evacuation centers in the province.
?These residents are living along the river banks and coastal areas in Buguey, Gonzaga, Sta. Ana, Ballesteros up to Aparri towns in our province,? Junio said.
Meanwhile, Executive Director Benito Ramos of the NDRRMC, said that aside from Cagayan province, many families are also tend to evacuate in the province of Nueva Ecija especially those living near the Casili River, San Mariano River, and Chico River.
[...]
http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/282700/headline
