Still reeling from the devastation caused by super typhoon Haiyan last year, thousands of Filipinos on Friday started fleeing their homes as another typhoon believed to be as strong as Haiyan threatens to hit the country anytime this weekend.
According to the latest weather bulletin released by local state weather bureau Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), typhoon "Hagupit," locally known as typhoon "Ruby," is aiming at the province of Samar in the Visayas region. The typhoon is expected to make its landfall over the Eastern Samar - Northern Samar area on Sunday morning.
PAGASA noted that the typhoon has maintained its course, moving west at 10 kilometers per hour with maximum sustained winds of 195 kph and gustiness of up to 230 kph. As of 4 a.m. Saturday (PH time), Hagupit is at 240 km east northeast of Borongan town in Eastern Samar province.
Most of the areas where public storm warning signals have been raised were in the Visayas region which typhoon Haiyan also pummeled a year ago. Haiyan has left over 6,000 people dead and over a thousand others missing.
Associated Press said that more than half of the country's total number of provinces are placed at potential high risk.
PAGASA announced in their weather bulletin that residents in these areas have already been alerted of possible flashfloods, landslides, and storm surges which may reach up to over 4 meters. Weather bureau authorities are predicting that the typhoon will exit the Philippines on Wednesday evening.
A 42-year old Haiyan survivor named Jojo Moro told AP that he is scared of the new typhoon. "I'm scared...I'm praying to God not to let another disaster strike us again. We haven't recovered from the first," he was quoted as saying.
As preparation, Moro, who lost his wife, daughter, and mother from last year's Haiyan, said he gathered and reserved canned goods, instant noodles, eggs, and water in preparation for the typhoon.
Meanwhile, BBC News said that typhoon Hagupit has also stranded thousands of passengers after several airlines have cancelled more than a hundred flights. Sea travel services were also suspended. It added that Filipinos were evacuated to higher grounds such as churches, schools, and stadiums.
Mariano Tan Jr., a resident of Tacloban in the Visayas, was quoted in the BBC report saying that this somehow looks like a deja vu of what happened last year.
However, Philippine President Benigno Aquino III was quoted in the BBC report saying that it was not indicated that Hagupit will be as strong as Haiyan.
Earlier, typhoon Hagupit was classified as super typhoon but was again downgraded on Friday, BBC News said, citing the US Navy Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Despite the downgrade, it noted that the typhoon remains as the "strongest storm" to hit the country this year.
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