Filipinos in sparsely populated Babuyan Islands and nearby provinces are facing “life threatening” conditions amid the onslaught of Super Typhoon ‘Nando’ as it prepares to make its landfall over northern Luzon, the state weather bureau warned on Monday.
In its latest weather bulletin, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said the storm has been tracked over the coastal waters of Babuyan Islands in Calayan, Cagayan as of 2:00 p.m.
It was moving westward at 25 kilometers per hour (kph) with maximum sustained winds of 215 kph and gustiness of up to 295 kph. The entire Babuyan Islands, where it is expected to land in the afternoon has already been placed under tropical cyclone wind signal no. 5—the highest level.
Under these conditions, PAGASA warned of “widespread damage” to structures and a situation that is “potentially very destructive to the community.” Forecasters also noted that “evacuation to safer shelters should have been completed since it may be too late” given these circumstances.
According to the Cagayan Provincial Information Office (CPIO), a total of 8,164 individuals or 2,751 families are currently affected by the super typhoon in the province. Based on the monitoring of local disaster officers, 6,851 people or 2,199 families are taking temporary shelter in evacuation centers.
The CPIO said 112 villages from 15 municipalities are affected by the storm. At the moment, some roads are still passable except the Cabaggan bridge and Nagtupacan hanging bridge in Pamplona, which were destroyed by Typhoon ‘Marce’ last year.
The state weather bureau, meanwhile, updated earlier wind signals hoisted in the following affected areas as ‘Nando’ maintained its strength and moved closer towards the Babuyan Islands:
SIGNAL NO. 4
- The southern portion of Batanes (Basco, Mahatao, Ivana, Uyugan, Sabtang), , the northern of mainland Cagayan (Santa Ana, Santa Praxedes, Claveria, Sanchez-Mira, Pamplona, Abulug, Ballesteros, Aparri, Buguey, Santa Teresita, Gonzaga, Camalaniugan), the northern portion of Ilocos Norte (Pagudpud, Burgos, Bangui, Dumalneg, Adams)
SIGNAL NO. 3
- The rest of Batanes, the central portion of mainland Cagayan (Lal-Lo, Gattaran, Baggao, Alcala, Santo Niño, Lasam, Allacapan, Rizal, Amulung, Piat), the northern and central portions of Apayao (Flora, Santa Marcela, Pudtol, Luna, Calanasan, Kabugao), and the rest of Ilocos Norte
SIGNAL NO. 2
- The rest of mainland Cagayan, Isabela, the rest of Apayao, Abra, Kalinga, Mountain Province, Ifugao, the northern portion of Benguet (Mankayan, Buguias, Bakun, Kibungan), the northeastern portion of Nueva Vizcaya (Diadi) , Ilocos Sur, and the northern portion of La Union (Sudipen, Bangar, Luna, Balaoan, Santol)
SIGNAL NO. 1
- Quirino, the rest of Nueva Vizcaya, the rest of Benguet, the rest of La Union, Pangasinan, Aurora, Nueva Ecija, Bulacan, Tarlac, Pampanga, Zambales, and the northern portion of Quezon (General Nakar) including Polillo Islands
