'SANTI': STORM SIGNAL NO. 3 HOISTED
IN METRO MANILA, 14 OTHER AREAS
MANILA, OCTOBER 31, 2009
(STAR) By Helen Flores - The state weather bureau placed yesterday 15
areas in central and southern Luzon, including Metro Manila, under storm warning
signal no. 3 as typhoon “Santi” maintained its strength and was expected to make
landfall last night.
Classes were suspended, travels by ferry were cancelled and the police and military were put on alert as the country braced for another powerful typhoon on the eve of All Saints’ Day.
Nathaniel Cruz, deputy administrator of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said Santi was expected to make landfall over Infanta, Quezon between 10 p.m. and midnight.
Storm signal no. 3 was hoisted over Quezon, including Polillo Island, Bulacan, Bataan, Rizal, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Oriental Mindoro, Lubang Island, Marinduque, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes and Metro Manila.
Signal no. 2 was raised over Aurora, Quirino, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Pampanga, Zambales, Occidental Mindoro, Albay and Burias Island.
Signal no. 1 was up in Isabela, Ifugao, Nueva Vizcaya, Benguet, La Union, Pangasinan, Sorsogon, Masbate, Romblon and Calamian Group.
“This is a very intense typhoon. We should be prepared,” Cruz said in a press briefing, emphasizing that Santi could bring strong and heavy rains in areas under storm signal warnings.
Pagasa administrator Prisco Nilo said that after hitting landmass in Infanta, the typhoon was forecast to cross Rizal, Laguna, Cavite, Metro Manila, and Batangas on its way to the South China Sea.
As of 4 p.m. yesterday, the eye of Santi was spotted some 230 kilometers east of Infanta with maximum sustained winds of 150 kilometers per hour near center and gustiness of up to 185 kph.
Santi was forecast to move west southwest at 24 kph.
At 1 p.m. yesterday, Santi accelerated and was moving west at 28 kilometers, forcing weather officials to issue an amended weather bulletin.
Metro to brace for ‘Milenyo-like’ scenario
Cruz warned that the strength of Santi could be likened to typhoon “Milenyo,” which hit Metro Manila in 2006.
Milenyo slammed Metro Manila on Sept. 28, toppling electric and phone lines and uprooting trees.
The typhoon also caused a massive blackout in parts of Luzon for several weeks.
In a 5 p.m. briefing, Pagasa officials said that 101 to 185 kph wind could be felt in areas under storm warning signal no. 3 within the next 18 hours.
Cruz said a typhoon of that intensify could cause damage to agriculture, uproot trees, and destroy light to medium structures.
Areas under storm signal no. 2 could expect winds of 61 to 100 kph within the next 24 hours while provinces under signal no. 1 could experience winds of 30 to 60 kph within the next 36 hours.
Santi is predicted to be at 220 km west southwest of Metro Manila this afternoon, and at 760 km west southwest of Metro Manila by tomorrow afternoon or over the South China Sea.
Nilo said Santi is expected to bring stormy weather over these areas until this noon.
All hands on deck
National and international disaster groups have completed the pre-positioning of relief goods both in Metro Manila and in Central and Northern Luzon ahead of the expected landfall.
National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) spokesman, Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres said the disaster planning for the last couple of days is already in an operational stage starting yesterday, including the “sectoralization” of Metro Manila.
Sectoralization means that member agencies of the NDCC are tasked to provide support to local government units per sector for better coordination and focus.
The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) have placed their units on alert.
The PNP would be handling Las Piñas, Quezon City, Manila, San Juan, Mandaluyong. The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) would respond to emergencies in Muntinlupa City, while the Bureau of Fire Protection would take care of the Camanava area.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines, on the other hand, particularly the National Capital Region Command, would be in charge of Marikina, Pasig, Pateros, Taguig, Parañaque, Pasay and Makati.
“Aside from the collective preparations we’re conducting, we are encouraging families to prepare a 72-hour survival kit,” Torres said.
He said the survival kit is essential as help and assistance may come a bit late, especially if the magnitude of Santi would be similar to that of tropical storm “Ondoy.”
Torres said pre-emptive evacuations are now ongoing in Quirino province while there is no need to do the same in Metro Manila because most of those who were directly hit by Ondoy are still staying in various evacuation centers.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) also deployed supplies to forward positions both in Metro Manila and Northern Luzon.
Anselme Motcho, UNICEF operations chief, said that while they are hoping that the country will be spared from another devastation, it is always wise to be prepared.
Motcho said UNICEF has hygiene kits, safe water kits and also family supplies such as sleeping mats and blankets, cooking pots, water containers and tarpaulin, packed and ready for dispatch to damaged and affected areas.
Alert teams readied
Chief Superintendent Nicanor Bartolome, chief of the PNP’s Police Community Relations Group and commander of the PNP’s Task Force on National Disaster and Management, said four rubber boats from the Special Action Force with 96 SAF troopers were sent from Camp Crame to Central Luzon.
Four rubber boats from the Maritime Group and four M35 trucks were also sent to the northern parts of the country.
“We are prepared for the typhoon. We will be conducting pre-emptive evacuations just like what we did during typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng,” said Bartolome.
The MMDA placed 700 personnel in Metro Manila on alert.
“The alert teams, ready to be deployed in a moment’s notice, are also equipped with the necessary heavy equipment and tools for clearing, rescue, relief, and evacuation efforts, and will be pre-positioned in Makati, Timog, C-5, Ortigas Avenue, and other strategic areas in the metropolis,” said MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando.
Fernando said Metrobase, the MMDA’s traffic and emergency monitoring center, will also be manned by extra personnel to receive and report all emergency assistance calls and assess the situations in major thoroughfares and flood-prone areas in Metro Manila.
The public can reach Metrobase through its hotline 136.
The MMDA will also deploy backhoes, cranes, forklifts, payloaders and rescue tender vehicles fully equipped with chainsaws, flood lights, generators, crow bars, fire extinguishers and hand saws to the major roads of Metro Manila just in case clearing of debris is needed.
Fernando also said the MMDA has issued disaster alert advisories to local government units to execute pre-emptive measures to prevent losses to lives and property should typhoon Santi wreak havoc on Metro Manila.
The directives, the MMDA chief said, should include LGUs undertaking preemptive evacuation of Metro Manila residents to safer ground if massive flooding occurs.
To complement these communications, the MMDA radio 1206 will be broadcasting hourly news bulletins.
Stranded
Meanwhile, some 7,000 sea travelers might end up spending All Saints’ Day in terminals or on board ships after the PCG banned vessels from leaving and traveling to areas that have been placed by Pagasa under public storm signal no. 2.
As of noon yesterday, 4,866 passengers were stranded in Southern Tagalog and the Bicol region. There were also some 2,000 people still waiting for their trips to the provinces at North Harbor in Manila, according to PCG spokesman Lieutenant Commander Armand Balilo.
Of the 2,288 stranded passengers in Southern Tagalog, 897 were in Batangas, 430 in Lucena, 379 in Calapan, 310 in Romblon, 150 in San Juan and 122 in Puerto Real.
A total of 2,578 people were trapped in Bicol, 1,080 of which were in Matnog, 693 in Pilar, 534 in Tabaco, 150 in Bulan, 54 in Tamban, 40 in Pasacao, 12 in Sabang, 10 in Pio Duran and five in Victory.
Aside from those who stayed in the terminal to wait for PCG to lift the ban, there were others who returned home or took shelter elsewhere.
Balilo admitted that the PCG received a lot of criticism because they called off the ferrying of passengers.
There were also some irate passengers who complained and questioned the ban order of PCG commander Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo.
“They asked why we banned the ships from traveling when it was sunny outside, but we explained that we were only following directions. There were others who were worried that they would no longer be able to go to the provinces,” Balilo said.
The PCG, however, assured the passengers that the ban is only temporary and the vessels would be allowed to sail once the weather improves. – With Mike Frialde, Jaime Laude, Evelyn Macairan, James Mananghaya
STORM SIGNALS RAISED IN LUZON /
TYPHOON 'SANTI' (MIRINAE) TO HIT METRO
By Helen Flores - The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and
Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) raised yesterday storm warning
signals in at least 18 areas in central and northern Luzon as typhoon “Santi”
(international name Mirinae) continued to intensify as it moved closer to the
country.
As this developed, Defense Secretary and National Disaster Coordinating Council chair Gilbert Teodoro Jr. urged the public, especially those who would troop to cemeteries on All Saints’ Day on Sunday, to closely monitor all NDCC’s disaster bulletins and updates.
Storm signal no. 2 was hoisted over Aurora and northern Quezon, including Polillo Island.
Signal no. 1 was up in Isabela, Ifugao, Quirino, Benguet, Nueva Vizcaya, Pangasinan, Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Bulacan, Rizal, the rest of Quezon, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur and Catanduanes.
In a late afternoon press briefing, Pagasa administrator Prisco Nilo advised the public in Metro Manila not to push through with their planned travel to central and northern Luzon due to the typhoon.
He also urged billboard owners to pull down their tarpaulins for the meantime and let the typhoon pass before putting them back again.
Nilo said the typhoon is expected to bring strong winds and heavy rains over central Luzon provinces as well as in Metro Manila until Saturday.
Moderate to heavy rains with occasional gusty winds, meanwhile, would likely affect the provinces in the southern part of northern Luzon.
Nilo warned residents living in areas under public storm warning signals against possible landslides and flashfloods.
He also cautioned the public against storm surges in the eastern coast of Luzon.
Nilo said the typhoon was expected to make landfall over Aurora-northern Quezon area tomorrow but stormy weather would already be felt in areas in Metro Manila, central Luzon and southern portion of northern Luzon, including the provinces of Nueva Vizcaya, Isabela, and Quirino starting tonight.
He said storm signal no. 1 was expected to be hoisted over Metro Manila Thursday night but they might raise it to storm signal no. 3 this afternoon.
“It is possible that the typhoon would pass near Metro Manila on Saturday or even make landfall over the metropolis on Saturday,” Nilo said.
“We might raise storm signal no. 4 over Metro Manila if this scenario happens,” he said.
As of 4 p.m. yesterday, the eye of Santi was spotted some 800 kilometers east of Baler, Aurora with maximum sustained winds of 150 kilometers per hour near center and gustiness of up to 185 kph.
It was forecast to move west at 20 kph and is expected to be at 360 km east of Baler this afternoon.
Santi was forecast to be in the vicinity of Nueva Ecija or at 90 km north of Manila tomorrow afternoon.
By Sunday afternoon, it would be at 580 km west of Manila or over the South China Sea.
NDCC calls for vigilance
Teodoro ordered all regional, provincial, city and municipal disaster officials to strengthen their respective disaster mitigation operations.
“If you have plans to go to cemeteries, if you can do it now, please do so this early as it might be raining heavily on Sunday,” he said.
NDCC spokesman Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres, on the other hand, enjoined the public to determine if the cemeteries they are heading to this Sunday are flood-prone areas.
He said if these cemeteries were prone to flooding, it would be wise not to go anymore on Sunday because of the incoming typhoon.
The NDCC has ordered all their regional counterparts to review hazard areas and identify those that would be safe to be used as evacuation centers in the event of another widespread flooding.
Over in Southern Tagalog, Oplan Damayan has been launched by disaster officials based in the island provinces of Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan in preparation for Santi.
Oplan Damayan is a coordinated training on Water Search and Rescue (WASAR) efforts.
“They have been conducting WASAR as part of their preparation for typhoon Santi,” Torres said, referring to the ongoing disaster preparations in Southern Tagalog.
Angara wants disaster training center
At the Senate, Sen. Edgardo Angara expressed support to Pagasa for the creation of a Disaster Management Training Center (DMTC).
“What we ought to learn from the Ondoy and Pepeng experience is that we need to put in place a better disaster prediction and response system,” said Angara, who chairs the Senate Committee on Science and Technology.
The proposed disaster management training center will assist national agencies to lead recovery and rehabilitation in the wake of calamities by developing plans and programs aimed at reducing social, environmental and institutional vulnerabilities.
Angara has sought the assistance of Hyogo Prefecture that dealt with the Great Hanshin Awaji earthquake for the establishment of the disaster management training center in Aurora, which is prone to natural disasters.
The Aurora DMTC will operate as a model in capacity building and institutional development of local officials, policymakers, professionals and academic organizations and individuals in a multidisciplinary approach to Disaster Risk Management (DRM).
“Through this center, we can better protect lives and properties from future disasters by enhancing and developing human, technical, and institutional capacity through training and staff development of the wide range of stakeholders and actors working on disaster risk reduction,” Angara said.
Rainy All Saints’ Day
Meanwhile, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) president Jaro, Iloilo Archbishop Angel Lagdameo said the expected heavy rains and winds that would accompany typhoon Santi might lead to a low turnout in cemeteries this weekend.
“The bad weather could be one of the reasons why there might only be a few people who would be able to visit the cemetery,” said Lagdameo in an interview over the Church-run Radio Veritas.
But the CBCP president reminded the faithful that even if they could not visit their dead relatives and friends in the cemeteries, they could still offer prayers for them. “We have to remind ourselves and the Catholics going to cemeteries that their priority or first obligation is to pray for the dead.”
He added that there is nothing wrong with offering prayers for the dearly departed at home or at church. –Evelyn Macairan, Christina Mendez, James Mananghaya, Jaime Laude
'Santi' on track to hit flooded Metro (The Philippine Star) Updated October 30, 2009 03:46 PM
[PHOTO
AT LEFT - Chief weather forecaster Dr. Nathaniel Cruz points to the exact
location of typhoon 'Santi' during a news briefing in Quezon City today.
AP]
MANILA, Philippines (AP) – Typhoon “Santi” (international codename: “Mirinae”), the fourth cyclone to wallop the Philippines in a month, was barreling toward Metro Manila, where some districts are still submerged by recent massive flooding, state weather forecasters said Friday.
Authorities closed schools, grounded ferries and army troops mobilized a battalion with rubber boats ready for rescue operations in the capital and more than 25 other provinces. Trucks with food and other relief goods were dispatched to northern provinces in the typhoon's path.
Mirinae — Korean for the Milky Way — is forecast to make landfall before dawn Saturday in the eastern province of Quezon or neighboring Aurora, sparing the country's rice bowl in the heart of the main Luzon Island before passing over Manila.
"If the center does not pass directly over Manila, we will still surely feel it," said chief government forecaster Nathaniel Cruz.
The typhoon, packing winds of 93 miles (150 kilometers) per hour and gusts of up to 115 mph (185 kph), is expected to exit Luzon into the South China Sea later on Saturday.
With the weather still clear Friday, millions of Filipinos boarded buses heading to their home provinces for this weekend's All Saints' Day, when people visit cemeteries paying respects to dead relatives.
Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro expressed fear that floods and traffic congestion may trap visitors at graveyards, where people traditionally spend a day or even a night, but few heeded his call to scrap the Roman Catholic tradition.
The northern Philippines is still struggling to recover from back-to-back storms that killed 929 in floods and landslides. Tropical Storm Ketsana on Sept. 26 caused the worst flooding in 40 years in and around Manila, followed by Typhoon Parma that unleashed mudslides in the northern mountains Oct. 3.
Typhoon Lupit last week skirted the northeast and veered toward Japan.
In some provinces, floodwaters raged through cemeteries, breaking up tombs and sweeping away caskets and bodies.
The storms and related landslides killed more than 900 people. About 122,000 people remain in government-run evacuation centers, and many communities in Manila suburbs are still under water, with residents moving on makeshift rafts and foot bridges.
In Arenda village, where knee-deep waters still lingered along the shore of Laguna Lake, southeast of Manila, Hilaria Abiam was getting ready to leave her house at a moment's notice.
"If the floodwater threatens to rise again then I will surely evacuate because I am really frightened," she said.