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MANILA. – Powerful Typhoon Koppu wrecked houses, tore down trees and unleashed landslides and floods, forcing thousands to flee as it pummelled the northern Philippines yesterday, officials said.
No casualties were reported but more than 14 000 people were evacuated from their homes, with more expected to flee as the slow-moving storm grinds its way northwards across the main island of Luzon before it is forecast to leave the country on Wednesday.
“We are fortunate because, as of this time, there has been no need for a major search and rescue operation,” Alexander Pama, head of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, told reporters in Manila late Sunday morning.
Acting weather bureau chief Esperanza Cayanan said that while the weather had begun to improve, Koppu could still set off more landslides and flash floods.
“It’s still typhoon intensity . . . there’s still danger,” Cayanan told a nationally televised news conference. “We shouldn’t be complacent.”
Koppu made landfall before dawn on the coast of Casiguran, a remote fishing town of 31 000 people, remaining near-stationary for seven hours and whipping the area with gusts of up to 210 kilometres an hour.
“Koppu tore off roofs of homes made of light materials. Rivers overflowed and the roads to the area are blocked by downed power pylons and trees,” Nigel Lontoc, the deputy civil defence director for the region, told reporters.
Widespread power and communications disruptions were reported across Luzon, with many roads and bridges also blocked by landslides, floods or fallen trees and power lines.
Ferry services across Luzon were suspended amid rough seas while commercial aviation was also disrupted with 30 flights cancelled, two of them on international routes.
A hospital building had its roof ripped off and houses were torn down near Baler, the provincial capital that draws surfers from around the world.
Lontoc also said the authorities cancelled a surfing competition in Baler scheduled for the weekend and ordered about 2 000 would-be participants to remain indoors.
Despite the storm weakening, the authorities warned that heavy rains could trigger flash floods and landslides in the region, home to more than 1,6 million people and known for its spectacular rice terraces carved on the slopes of towering mountains.
“We are strongly recommending forced evacuations in the Cordillera administrative region, especially villages that are landslide- and flood-prone,” Pama said.
The state weather service has also warned of storm surges – massive typhoon-generated waves smashing along coastal areas – but there have been no such reports yet as the storm moved inland. – France24-AFP- AP.
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