Philippine authorities yesterday ordered more than 100,000 people living along the country’s east coast to evacuate as approaching Typhoon Nesat forced schools to close and flights to be canceled.
Nesat was expected to make landfall this morning along the vulnerable eastern edge of the main island of Luzon, then dump heavy rains hundreds of kilometers inland to areas including Manila.
“We expect hazards such as landslides, flash floods, strong winds and storm surges,” senior state weather forecaster Robert Sawi told reporters.
Photo: EPA
He said storm alert warnings had been hoisted over most of Luzon, home to more than 48 million people, or more than half the Philippines’ population.
The weather bureau said Nesat, already packing winds of 120kph near its center and gusts of up to 150kph, would continue to build in strength while at sea.
Nesat was expected to unload between up to 25mm of rain an hour at a radius of 650km, according to the bureau.
The Philippine National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said 111,930 residents from five towns that were highly prone to landslides and floods in the eastern province of Albay had already been ordered to move to safer ground.
Several domestic flights were also canceled yesterday, while schools in Manila and nearby provinces were suspended in preparation for the storm, disaster relief officials said.
Nesat’s rains would also affect the southern island of Mindanao, where a major river system overflowed its banks because of heavy rains that began last week, killing two and displacing more than 11,000 families, the weather bureau said.
An average of 20 storms and typhoons batter the Philippines yearly. Typhoon Nanmadol killed 35 last month, while at least 70 others were killed by storms Nock-ten and Muifa in July.
Exactly two years ago yesterday, Tropical Storm Ketsana left 464 people dead after flooding more than 80 percent of Manila.
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