MANILA, Dec 24, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Thousands of people in typhoon-prone
central Philippines have had their Christmas plans ruined after they were
told to leave their homes as a severe tropical storm approaches.
Officials on Christmas Eve said residents should evacuate coastal areas,
and thousands more were stranded at ports with ferry services shut down as
the nation hunkered down for rain and strong winds.
Damaging gale- to storm-force winds were forecast over the Asian nation’s
Pacific coast in the afternoon ahead of Tropical Storm Phanfone’s projected
landfall on Samar island as early as 5:00 pm (0900 GMT), the state weather
service said.
Though much weaker, Phanfone was tracking a similar path as Super Typhoon
Haiyan, the country’s deadliest cyclone on record which left more than 7,300
people dead or missing in 2013.
All ships on the storm’s projected path through the central islands were
ordered to stay in port, while local executives there told residents of the
coasts as well as flood- and landslide-prone areas to move to safety.
“Some families are reluctant to evacuate because they want to celebrate
Christmas at home, but local officials will force them out if they refuse to
heed our warnings,” regional civil defence official Reyden Cabrigas told AFP.
Cabrigas, speaking by phone from the central city of Tacloban, said
evacuations were underway there as well as nearby Samar, but added he did not
immediately have a total count.
“We are aiming for zero casualties,” Cabrigas added.
More than 21,000 ferry passengers trying to get home for the mainly
Catholic nation’s Christmas holidays have been stranded at ports as shipping
shut down, the coast guard said Tuesday.
Local carriers also suspended dozens of domestic flights.
The state weather service said Phanfone, Laotian for “animal”, may
strengthen into a typhoon with sustained peak winds of more than 120
kilometres (62 miles) an hour overnight Wednesday.
It advised residents, including those in Manila, to stay indoors on
Christmas Day to avoid the high winds which can cause damage to weaker
structures.
The Philippines is the first major landmass facing the Pacific cyclone
belt, and the archipelago gets hit by an average of 20 storms and typhoons
each year, putting millions of people in disaster-prone areas in a state of
constant poverty.
Strong winds and associated dangers like floods, landslides, and, more
rarely, giant walls of seawater pounding the coasts kill scores of people
each year, wipe out farmers’ harvests and destroy infrastructure.
Homes built with flimsy materials, as well as populated areas along the
coasts, floodplains, and mountainous interiors, are often the most
vulnerable.