Caraga braces for ‘Auring’; evacuations start

Evacuations have already started in different parts of the Caraga Administrative Region and is now under red alert ahead of a projected landfall by tropical storm “Auring,” an official said Friday.

“I’m sure that pre-emptive evacuation has already started, we just have yet to receive official reports because it’s ongoing,” Amado Posas, head of operations at the Office of Civil Defense (OCD)-Caraga, told the Daily Tribune by phone.

Ongoing efforts to mitigate the weather disturbance’s effects are currently focused on Surigao del Norte, where it was projected to make landfall, as well as the neighboring Dinagat Islands and parts of Surigao del Sur, he added.

‘Auring’ was forecast to make landfall over the eastern coast of Caraga on Sunday morning, and likely take a northwestward path towards Visayas and MIMAROPA on Sunday and Monday.

In its Facebook page, the OCD-Caraga noted an initial report on the pre-emptive evacuation of 27 families composed of 99 persons in the coastal town of Bayabas, Surigao del Sur.

Island-barangays and coastal areas are being prioritized, along with areas that usually experience floods and landslides, Posas said.

“Floods are a perennial problem. We have areas that experience floods even if there’s no storm, just heavy rainfall,” he said.

Posas said the OCD-Caraga will be placed under red alert this afternoon, after an ongoing “emergency meeting.”

The local disaster risk reduction and management unit of Butuan City, the regional center, has already been placed under red alert, he added.

In an advisory issued Friday morning, state weather bureau PAGASA said tropical cyclone warning signal no. 1 is currently prevailing in Davao Oriental, the eastern portion of Davao de Oro, the eastern portion of Agusan del Sur, and Surigao del Sur.

It said heavy to intense rains are expected over Caraga as the storm passes over the region from tomorrow afternoon through Sunday morning.

“Auring” was forecast to make landfall over the eastern coast of Caraga on Sunday morning, and likely take a northwestward path towards Visayas and MIMAROPA on Sunday and Monday, it said.

The storm currently bears maximum sustained winds of 95 kilometers per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 115 kph.

PHOTOGRAPH BY IVY MARIE MANGADLAO FOR THE DAILY TRIBUNE SEVERAL residents trooped to the Bayabas Central Elementary School in Bayabas, Surigao del Sur as local authorities ordered a mandatory preemptive evacuation ahead of the impending landfall of typhoon ‘Auring’ in the Caraga Administrative Region.