“OFEL” yesterday intensified into a super typhoon before making landfall in Cagayan province and will continue to weaken until it dissipates inside the Philippine area of responsibility, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Service Administration (PAGASA) said.
At least 20 areas were placed under storm warning signals because of Ofel, based on a bulletin issued by PAGASA at 8 p.m. yesterday.
Another weather disturbance (international name Man-yi), intensified into a severe tropical storm and entered PAR at 8 last night. It was named “Pepito.” PAGASA said it may “make landfall over the eastern coast of southern Luzon during the weekend.”
PAGASA said Ofel made the landfall in Baggao town at 1:30 p.m., hours after becoming a super typhoon. Thirty minutes later, it weakened into a typhoon.
In the 8 p.m. bulletin, PAGASA said the center of Ofel was in the vicinity of Sta Teresita, Cagayan as of 7 p.m. It was packing maximum sustained winds of 155 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 255 kph, and was moving north northwestward at 15 kph.
Babuyan Islands, and the northern and eastern portions of mainland Cagayan were placed under Tropical Cyclone Warning Signal No. 4.
Five other areas were under Signal No. 3 — Batanes, rest of Cagayan, northern portion of Isabela, northern portion of Apayao, and the northern portion of Ilocos Norte.
Six areas were under Signal No. 2. These are western and eastern portions of Isabela, rest of Apayao, Kalinga, northeastern portion of Abra, eastern portion of Mountain Province, and rest of Ilocos Norte.
Ten areas were under Signal No. 1 — rest of Isabela, northern portion of Quirino, northern portion of Nueva Vizcaya, rest of Mountain Province, Ifugao, rest of Abra, northern portion of Benguet, Ilocos Sur, northern portion of La Union, and northern portion of Aurora.
“Ofel will continue moving northwestward and pass close or make (another) landfall in the vicinity of Babuyan Islands tonight (Thursday night),” PAGASA said.
It said Ofel will turn northward today over the sea west of Batanes, then northeastward over the sea east of Taiwan during the weekend.
“Note that hazards on land and coastal waters may still be experienced in areas outside the landfall point and the forecast confidence cone,” PAGASA said.
PAGASA said Ofel is weakening “due to increasing interaction with the landmass of Luzon.”
It said Ofel will continue to weaken “due to frictional effects of land, as well as the increasingly unfavorable environment over the Luzon Strait and the sea east of Taiwan.”
Ofel may exit PAR on Friday will reenter after making a U-turn. It will later weaken into severe tropical storm, to tropical storm, and then to tropical depression. It is forecast to become a low pressure area on Monday before dissipating inside PAR.
PAGASA said intense to torrential rains are expected in Cagayan until today. Heavy to intense rains are also expected in Batanes, Isabela, Ilocos Norte and Apayao also until today.
PREEMPTIVE EVACUATION
Defense Secretary and National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) chairman Gilberto Teodoro Jr has ordered preemptive evacuation of residents hazard areas in several regions due to potential impacts of Pepito.
Teodoro’s order was announced by Cesar Idio, deputy administrator for operations of the Office of Civil Defense – the NDRRMC’s implementing arm – during a press briefing yesterday at Camp Aguinaldo.
Idio said the preemptive evacuation covers eight regions — Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol, Western Visayas and Central Visayas.
Ilocos region, Cagayan Valley, and Central Luzon are currently affected by Ofel. Many residents in these areas have already evacuated due to Ofel.
AID
President Marcos Jr. yesterday distributed over P88 million worth of financial assistance to thousands of farmers, fisherfolk and their families affected by the severe tropical storm “Kristine” and super typhoon “Leon” in Cavite ad Oriental Mindoro.
The President reiterated his directive to departments and agencies to redesign the flood control masterplan and consider changing weather patterns and impact of climate change.
At least P46.14 million of financial aid, sourced from the Office of the President, was distributed to close to 5,000 farmers and fisherfolks in Pinamalayan in Oriental Mindoro, who received around P10,000 each.
Marcos said the cash aid is a symbol of the national government’s commitment to help them recover.
From Oriental Mindoro, Marcos proceeded to Tagaytay City where he distributed P42.33 million worth of cash aid in financial assistance to 4,233 farmers and fisherfolk from Cavite, who received P10,000 each.
‘CLIMATE-PROOF’
Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte, whose province was recently hit by Kristine, said it is high time for the national government to work with local government units in putting up “permanent climate-proof and fully-equipped” mega evacuation centers in elevated places.
Villafuerte is a co-author of the proposed “Ligtas Pinoy Centers” bill, principally introduced by Speaker Martin Romualdez, which tasks the NDRRMC to work with LGUs in identifying the flood-prone cities or municipalities that should be prioritized in the construction of permanent evacuation centers.
He said the bill would ensure that evacuees “have safe and fully-equipped temporary shelters to go to whenever typhoons and other natural calamities strike especially our high-risk communities with ever increasing ferocity and frequency as a result of planet heating.”
Under the bill, the evacuation centers “must be calamity-resilient, built with sturdy materials, and in accordance with the specifications of Republic Act (RA) No. 6541, or the National Building Code of 1972, or shall be at par with the standards set by the International Building Code.”
According to the NDRRMC, Kristine and Leon had displaced 617,168 people, with 158,697 of them sheltered in 566 evacuation centers as of Nov. 12.
“The use of public schools and even churches as temporary shelters for evacuees will continue being a nagging woe whenever a killer storm or any other disaster or calamity hits us until such time that we have permanent ECs run by LGUs in every city and municipality and that are built with adequate facilities and ready for increasingly erratic and destructive weather caused by climate change,” Villafuerte said.
Villafuerte said the establishment of permanent evacuation centers will enable our LGUs to avoid using public schools in their localities as temporary shelters for displaced constituent-families.
He recalled that in Memorandum No. 004-2024 dated July 25 on the use of public schools as evacuation centers, Education Secretary Juan Edgardo Angara told school heads that “classrooms shall only be used as a last resort,” and that “school premises shall be (used) as brief as possible (not more than 15 days).” – With Jocelyn Montemayor and Wendell Vigilia
