Posted on 10/29/2006 6:01:00 AM PST by bd476
MANILA, Philippines - One of the strongest typhoons to hit the storm-prone Philippines in years battered the mountainous north late Sunday as the country braced for a possible disaster. "Let us all pray," President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said in a message on nationwide radio as she ordered schools and government offices shut in the affected area and temporarily banned bus trips there to prevent casualties.
Two major dams were to release water to prevent them from overflowing, officials said.
Typhoon Cimaron made landfall around 9 p.m. local time, lashing Isabela province with sustained winds of 121 miles per hour and gusts of up to 143 mph, the Philippine weather bureau said. Hours earlier, the region was placed under the highest of a four-step warning system to advise residents to abandon vulnerable coasts and mountains.
"The wind is really blowing strong. Trees are swaying and I can hear tin roof sheets banging about. Large areas are without light. We're expecting the worst," Armand Araneta, a provincial Office of Civil Defense officer, told The Associated Press by phone from Isabela.
Arroyo, who is visiting China, joined by telephone an emergency meeting of disaster-response officials and urged authorities and residents in four northern provinces to brace for the worst from the 16th typhoon to hit the country this year.
"I appeal to you not to venture out if there is no need for that," Arroyo said on radio.
Hospitals and disaster-response contingents, including army troops and the air force, were put on standby, Health Secretary Francisco Duque told reporters.
All Saints' Day is Wednesday, a public holiday when millions troop to cemeteries to remember their dead, some leaving days in advance for outlying provinces. Officials warned people to cancel trips to threatened areas.
"We know in our culture that we should visit our dead, but this is not an ordinary typhoon, it's a super typhoon," a government official, Graciano Yumul, warned. "People could figure in many accidents if they don't listen."
Typhoon warning number four — the highest level for a weather disturbance — was raised over Isabela and the nearby provinces of Aurora, Cagayan and Quirino.
The storm was expected to weaken while traveling over land, but still should maintain typhoon strength as it emerges into the South China Sea, forecasters said.
Cimaron — the Philippine word for wild ox — is potentially devastating to a region prone to deadly mudslides. A typhoon warning number 4 could uproot trees, severely damage wood structures and disrupt power and communication services.
Forecasters said the last time that a level four was raised was in December 2004 when Luzon was battered by a strong typhoon that was deflected up by a mountain range, preventing a large number of casualties or huge damage.
Another 10 provinces were under signal No. 3, while another 10 were under No. 2 or 1. No typhoon warning was immediately raised in Manila, the sprawling capital in southern Luzon, although it could experience foul weather.
Last month, Typhoon Xangsane left 230 people dead and missing as it ripped through Manila and neighboring provinces.
In Albay province, 210 miles southeast of Manila, a few ferries were barred by the coast guard from leaving Tabaco town due to rough seas, stranding about 1,000 passengers, ABS-CBN TV reported.
About 20 typhoon and tropical storms lash the country each year.
More information:
Super Typhoon Barrelling Down on Manila PhilippinesTroops from Okinawa, Japan set to wrap up Philippines exercises
We went through a big one in '58 in Japan. This looks three or four times larger.
Some of my relatives were living in Hokkaido during that time. I can't imagine living anywhere in Japan during a typhoon or an earthquake.
My dad was building a boat in our back yard with the occasional help of a Japanese carpenter. When talk of the typhoon and potential tidal surge came up, I suggested we move all our stuff into the boat and ride it out...
Maybe Rove's weather machine can make it only wipe out the muzzie terrorists.
Aren't any at all on Luzon where Cimaron is hitting; they're all on Mindanao and the southern islands, completely unaffected by the Typhoon.
damn
Save the women!
Actually, I lived in the Kansai area for four years, and lived through about 10 typhoons and maybe 2 average earthquakes and a bunch of minor ones. Really nothing to write home about. In fact, some of those 2/3 magnitude quakes are nothing more than mother earth rocking you to sleep. One funny thing I noticed is that everyone seems to wake up right before one happens.
My wife slept through the 95 Kobe quake - she was only 50 miles away from the epicenter. This really tells you less about the earthquake (that killed 6,500 people) and more about my wifes propensity to sleep deeply.
look at how tight that eyewall is...
this is a monster storm. I'll pray for the people in this monster's path
Damn, Karl forgot to lock up his weather machine again.
That was the only time I've been able to walk around in the middle of the eye. Very weird. Totally calm and the city streets had mounds of debris and everyone with more sense than I had was inside. They didn't call me hen' na Gaijin ("crazy foreigner") for nuthin'.
Most private Japanese houses have amado, or storm shutters, usually aluminum these days, over all exterior windows - they slide in place for privacy at night and are a Godsend when a typhoon starts blowing junk around. Most of the roofs there are heavy tile, and when one of those hits the street you have shrapnel. Inside is a good place to be.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.