Two dead as powerful typhoon clips north Philippines
AFP, Manila :
Two people have been killed in a powerful typhoon that grazed the Philippines’ northeastern tip, according to authorities who said Monday that the evacuation of coastal villages and volcanic slopes averted a higher toll.
Many of the thousands who fled the storm’s path started to return home after typhoon Noul-the fourth and strongest storm to hit the Philippines this year-whipped the coast with wind gusts of up to 220 kilometres (137 miles) per hour.
Eighteen months after super typhoon Haiyan devastated the central Philippines, churning up tsunami-like waves and leaving more than 7,350 people dead or missing, authorities credited the greater awareness with saving lives. “People listened to our warnings. They’ve learned their lesson from past storms,” Norma Talosig, civil defence director for the northeastern region, told AFP.
The two confirmed deaths were a 70-year-old man and his 45-year-old son who died after being electrocuted while fixing their house in Aparri town early Sunday as Typhoon Noul started to bear down.
The evacuations had begun on Friday, with more than 3,000 people leaving coastal fishing communities in Isabela and Cagayan province, and hundreds more from villages near the slopes of Bulusan volcano in the central region.
Authorities had feared heavy rains could trigger volcanic mud flows after the volcano started belching ash earlier this month. And with civil defence authorities warning of dangerous storm surges of up to two metres (6.5 feet), coastal residents were taken inland in buses and truck, even ambulances. Most of the evacuees started to return home Sunday night, local authorities said.
Two people have been killed in a powerful typhoon that grazed the Philippines’ northeastern tip, according to authorities who said Monday that the evacuation of coastal villages and volcanic slopes averted a higher toll.
Many of the thousands who fled the storm’s path started to return home after typhoon Noul-the fourth and strongest storm to hit the Philippines this year-whipped the coast with wind gusts of up to 220 kilometres (137 miles) per hour.
Eighteen months after super typhoon Haiyan devastated the central Philippines, churning up tsunami-like waves and leaving more than 7,350 people dead or missing, authorities credited the greater awareness with saving lives. “People listened to our warnings. They’ve learned their lesson from past storms,” Norma Talosig, civil defence director for the northeastern region, told AFP.
The two confirmed deaths were a 70-year-old man and his 45-year-old son who died after being electrocuted while fixing their house in Aparri town early Sunday as Typhoon Noul started to bear down.
The evacuations had begun on Friday, with more than 3,000 people leaving coastal fishing communities in Isabela and Cagayan province, and hundreds more from villages near the slopes of Bulusan volcano in the central region.
Authorities had feared heavy rains could trigger volcanic mud flows after the volcano started belching ash earlier this month. And with civil defence authorities warning of dangerous storm surges of up to two metres (6.5 feet), coastal residents were taken inland in buses and truck, even ambulances. Most of the evacuees started to return home Sunday night, local authorities said.
