Disaster authorities in the Philippines report that thousands of people have evacuated their homes as Typhoon ‘Goni’ ripped through areas south of Manila.
Goni, known locally as ‘Rolly’ inthe Philippines, made landfall near Bato and Virac in Catanduanes, early 01 November, as a Super Typhoon with maximum sustained winds of 225km/h. The storm made landfall again near Tiwi, Albay, and again near San Narciso, Quezon.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported 457,903 people had been pre-emptively evacuated in several regions, in particular Calabarzon, Bicol and Mimaropa.
Winds, heavy rain and storm surge caused severe damage, interrupting communications, and water and power supply. NDRRMC said that, as of 02 November, 1,468,296 people had been affected and 361,699 people remained in 2,285 evacuation centres.
The Philippine News Agency (PNA) reported that 17 people had died in Bicol Region, where 1.2 million people were affected and 345,044 evacuated, in particular in areas of Camarines Sur province, where 927,739 were affected and 140,000 evacuated.
NDRRMC reported severe flooding in Camarines Sur and Albay in Bicol region. Legazpi in the province of Albay recorded over 270mm of rain in 24 hours to 01 November 2020. Hundreds of houses were reportedly buried under debris and mud flows cascading down slopes of the Mayon volcano in Guinobatan. Local congress representative Zaldy Co said several people are thought to have been buried under the debris.
Flooding also affected Batangas, Laguna, Quezon in Calabarzon region, damaging roads and bridges. The province of Cavite in Calabarzon declared a state of calamity.
Social Media
Philippine #RedCross assessment teams are pushing into areas hard hit by super #TyphoonGoni, reaching out to communities and assessing the damage to ensure relief targets the needs on the ground. pic.twitter.com/3sEfB6W8B5
— IFRC Asia Pacific (@IFRCAsiaPacific) November 2, 2020
