Close to 100,000 people fled their homes and beachfront resorts as typhoon “Odette” (international name Rai), which the US-based Joint Typhoon Warning Center classified as a super typhoon, lashed the country Thursday, with a warning the storm could hit coastal communities “like a freight train.”
The powerful storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometers an hour as it barreled towards central and southern regions of the country, the state weather bureau said.
But it warned wind speeds could intensify to 195 kilometers an hour before it makes landfall near the popular tourist destination of Siargao island in the afternoon.
It would be the strongest typhoon to hit the country this year, the agency added.
“This monster storm is frightening and threatens to hit coastal communities like a freight train,” said Alberto Bocanegra, head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in the Philippines.
“We are very concerned that climate change is making typhoons more ferocious and unpredictable.”
The weather bureau warned “very destructive” winds could cause “heavy to very heavy damage to structures and vegetation,” along with widespread flooding and rain-induced landslides.
More than 98,000 people sought emergency shelter as the storm charged across the Pacific Ocean, the national disaster agency said.
Evacuations were still under way in areas in the typhoon’s path.
Among the evacuees were domestic tourists visiting the country’s famed beaches and dive spots ahead of Christmas. Foreign travelers are still banned from entering the Philippines under COVID-19 restrictions.
Verified video shot by tourists in Siargao showed trees swaying violently with the force of the wind as people waited for the full impact of the typhoon to hit.
In the town of Dapa, families slept on the floor of a sports complex turned into a temporary evacuation center.
Scores of flights have been canceled and dozens of ports temporarily closed as the weather bureau warned several meter-high storm surges could cause “life-threatening flooding” in low-lying coastal areas.
Weather forecaster Christopher Perez said the winds could “topple electric posts and trees” and damage houses made of light materials.
“Brace for heavy rains, brace for strong winds too,” Perez told a briefing.
The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) announced on Thursday that 26,430 families or about 98,000 people have been moved out of the typhoon’s path in Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, Northern Mindanao, and Caraga.
Odette has also affected 59 seaports in Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol, Central Visayas, Northern Mindanao and Caraga, all of which are now non-operational.
In its latest maritime safety advisory, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said a total of 4,358 passengers, drivers, and cargo workers are stranded in ports in Bicol, Central Visayas, northeastern Mindanao, Eastern Visayas, and Western Visayas.
In its 2 p.m. tropical cyclone bulletin, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said the center of the eye of Odette was around Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte.
It had maximum sustained winds of 195 kph near the center, gustiness of up to 240 kph per hour, and central pressure of 915 hectopascals.
It was moving west-northwestward at 30 kph and was expected to be in the vicinity of Sibonga, Cebu by 11 p.m. on Thursday.
Odette on Thursday afternoon made its second landfall over Cagdianao, Dinagat Islands, hours after it hit land over Siargao in Surigao del Norte, the state weather bureau said.
The country’s 15th storm made its latest landfall around 3:10 p.m, PAGASA said. It first hit land over Siargao at 1:30 p.m.
Odette is forecast to cross several provinces in Central and Western Visayas regions before emerging over the Sulu Sea Friday morning.
After passing near either Cuyo or Cagayancillo archipelago, it is expected to cross the northern or central portion of Palawan Friday afternoon or evening before emerging over the West Philippine Sea, PAGASA said.
Odette entered the Philippine area of responsibility on Tuesday night.
Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 4 was raised over eight areas in Visayas and Mindanao as Typhoon Odette maintained its strength and made its third landfall in Southern Leyte.
In its 5 p.m. severe weather bulletin, PAGASA said the center of the eye of Odette was located in the vicinity of Liloan, Southern Leyte with maximum sustained winds of 195 kilometers per hour near the center, gustiness of up to 270 km per hour, and central pressure of 915 hPa.
PAGASA said Odette made its fourth landfall in the vicinity of Padre Burgos, Southern Leyte at 5:40 p.m.
The super typhoon took down transmission lines and knocked out power in several areas, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) said Thursday night.
As of 7 p.m., power outages were experienced in Leyte, Davao Oriental, Bohol, Eastern Samar, Surigao del Norte, and Agusan del Sur.
“Inspection and restoration of lines in the affected areas will be in full swing as soon as the weather allows,” the company said.
Odette is hitting the country late in the typhoon season, with most cyclones developing between July and October.
It is the second super typhoon to threaten the Philippines since September when typhoon “Kiko” grazed the northeastern tip of the main island of Luzon.
Scientists have long warned that typhoons are becoming more powerful, and strengthening more rapidly, as the world becomes warmer because of man-made climate change.
A super typhoon is also known as a category five hurricane in the US. The Earth tends to experience around five storms of that power a year.
Odette is expected to weaken slightly as it moves across the Visayas region, and Mindanao and Palawan islands, before emerging Saturday over the South China Sea and heading towards Vietnam.
The Philippines—ranked as one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to the impacts of a warming planet—is hit by an average of 20 storms and typhoons every year, which typically wipe out harvests, homes and infrastructure in already impoverished areas. Rio N. Araja and AFP