500,000 Filipinos flee homes due to typhoon
MANILA: As powerful typhoon Tisoy barreled towards the Bicol Region, officials on Monday continued to implement the mandatory evacuation of more people, with one province — Albay — accounting for close to 90,000 families or about 500,000 individuals.
Albay Governor Al Francis Bichara reported that of the total, 25,000 families or 106,000 were already evacuated from the danger areas especially those prone lahar flows, floods, landslides and storm surges as high as more than three feet.
In particular, Bichara said the evacuation of the remaining affected residents started on Monday from the coastal towns of Tiwi and Santo Domingo as well as the cities of Tabaco and Legaspi threatened by lahar flows from the Mayon Volcano.
“We will be enforcing mandatory evacuation starting today until tomorrow morning. All mayors should enforce the evacuation now,” Bichara told a press conference on Sunday afternoon.
Alsoonmonday,stateweathermenreportedthe inclusion of several provinces in Eastern Visayas in Central Philippines due to the projected impact of Tisoy (international name Kammuri) as it intensified, including Cebu. Dinagat islands and Siargao island.
In an advisory released on Monday, weathermen said Tisoy could make landfall either on the provinces of Catanduaes and Albay between Monday night and early Tuesday morning with its maximum centre winds of 150 kilometers per hour and gusts of up to 170 kph.
Storm signals from a high of 3 to a low of 1 were hoisted over more than 20 areas on the main island of Luzon, including Metro Manila as well as the provinces of Batangas, Laguna, Pampanga, Bulacan, Tarlac and Zambales which host several sporting venues for the 30th Southeast Asian Games SEAG.
Landrido Dalida, the state weather bureau deputy chief, warned of disruptions of some events because the SEAG venues were along the path of Tisoy following projections it would bring strong winds and heavy rains after making landfall.
“We are giving SEAG officials the necessary data like how much rainfall that Tisoy would bring.
Definitely, the games will be affected,” Dalida pointed out, adding that they consider Monday and Tuesday are “critical days.
He explained that Tisoy was projected to barrel through Luzon amid warnings of strong winds and continuous heavy to intense rains over its path before it is projected to exit from the country on Thursday.