Reuters AlertNet Lite - PHILIPPINES: Typhoon Nuri leaves six dead, 5,000 displaced

Reuters AlertNet Full site

NEWSDESK

PHILIPPINES: Typhoon Nuri leaves six dead, 5,000 displaced

21 Aug 2008 11:41:01 GMT
Source: IRIN

Background

• Philippines floods

• Floods

MANILA, 21 August 2008 (IRIN) - Typhoon Nuri, the 12th storm to hit the Philippines this year, was blowing out of the country on 21 August after dumping heavy rain across large parts of northern Luzon Island, causing landslides and flooding, and killing at least six people, disaster relief officials said.

Nuri slammed into Luzon on 20 August with maximum sustained winds of 140km per hour at the centre and gusts of up to 170km per hour, uprooting trees, blowing away billboards and forcing the Luzon authorities to hoist warnings of possible storm surges along the northeastern seaboard.

The typhoon was last spotted 350km northwest of Laoag city, Ilocos Province, and barrelling in the general direction of Hong Kong, where it is forecast to make landfall by the morning of 22 August, the Philippine state weather bureau said. It continued, however, to bring heavy monsoon rains over the Ilocos region in northern Luzon, where regional disaster monitors had prepared evacuation contingencies.

Six people were reported killed by Nuri, including 72-year-old Petra Kadatar, who was crushed to death in a landslide in the mountain resort city of Baguio. Three children, aged 1-10, were also killed when a landslide buried their home in Benguet Province. Power was temporarily cut off in Apayao Province, although it was restored within hours.

Displaced

Some 5,000 people were displaced by flooding in the Ilocos and La Union regions, and some 145 houses remained under water on the evening of 20 August, as Nuri was exiting, the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) reported.

Some roads in northern Luzon were also impassable due to landslides or flooding, though damage was not as extensive as initially feared due to the high level of preparedness, it said.

Manila experienced heavy rains, forcing the authorities to call off school classes on 20 August.

"We were prepared. We were not just looking at rain and strong winds; we were also looking at potential storm surges and strong waves in coastal areas," said deputy NDCC administrator Anthony Golez, adding that Luzon provinces had been forewarned about Typhoon Nuri and that contingency measures had been in place even before it made landfall.

"We still expect some heavy rain, but less frequent than yesterday. Northern Luzon is still stormy with monsoon rains as Karen (Nuri's local name) departs," Golez said.

Roberto Nacienceno, general manager of the Metro Manila Development Authority, reported minor flooding in some parts of the capital, but said there were no mass evacuations, unlike in previous storms.

The Hong Kong Observatory meanwhile says Nuri will move towards southern China, bringing wind and thunderstorms. The Chinese authorities issued a level-two disaster control emergency response for Nuri, which was expected to make landfall on southeastern coastal areas on 22 or 23 August, it said.

Improved preparedness

An average of 20 typhoons blow into the Philippines from the Pacific annually, some of them devastating and leading to massive loss of lives and property. The Philippine government, however, has over recent years, been increasingly working with international agencies, including UN agencies, to increase disaster preparedness and mitigation strategies.

Disaster management is localised through various regional disaster coordinating councils, which coordinate with the NDCC in Manila, according to the NDCC. Foreign agencies like the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC), UN agencies and humanitarian organisations provide assistance and resources as required.

According to the office of the UN resident coordinator in the Philippines, the NDCC prepositioned three days worth of food and supplies at the local level, and an additional three days at the regional level, and were not anticipating requesting international assistance.

jg/bj/cb

Email this article Send comments

Topics

• Floods

• Refugees & displacement

• Disaster mitigation

MORE >>

Emergencies

• Typhoon Nuri

• Philippines floods

MORE >>

NGO latest

• Merlin provides help for displaced families
Merlin - UK

• Action Against Hunger's emergency team provides assistance to displaced people in Western Georgia
ACF - UK

• "4 Clean Campaign" - Clean water and hygiene for a new beginning after the cyclone: One day with the mobile team of Malteser International in the Irrawaddy Delta
Malteser International - Germany

• The IRC Distributes Hygiene Items to Georgia's Displaced
International Rescue Committee

• UMCOR Hotline for August 19, 2008
UMCOR - USA

MORE >>

Latest news

• PHILIPPINES: Typhoon Nuri leaves six dead, 5,000 displaced

• PAKISTAN: Restive tribal area faces mass displacements

• Storm Fay drenches space shuttle's port in Florida

• US stops African refugee program after DNA tests

• Scientists urge US to protect economy from climate

MORE >>

IRIN news

Breaking stories

PHILIPPINES: Typhoon Nuri leaves six dead, 5,000 displaced (1 minute ago)

PAKISTAN: Restive tribal area faces mass displacements (1 minute ago)

AlertNet insight

Georgia's displaced top 150,000, U.N. says (1 minute ago)

Aid agency news feed

Merlin provides help for displaced families (1 minute ago)

Blogs

Georgia: The militarization of humanitarian action (1 minute ago)

Maps

Typhoon Nuri (1 minute ago)

Country information

Briefings

Typhoon Nuri - [Who works where]

Philippines floods - [Who works where]

Topics

Floods

Refugees & displacement

Disaster mitigation

Statistics graphs

Human development index ranking (2005)

Chart for Human development index ranking

View more stats

Del.icio.us | Digg

Digg |

NewsVine | Reddit

Latest images

Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-08-21T102957Z_01_NEP04_RTRIDSP_2_SOUTHASIA-FLOODS_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/NEP04.htm

Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-08-21T102441Z_01_NEO03_RTRIDSP_2_SOUTHASIA-FLOODS_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/NEO03.htm

Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-08-21T063911Z_01_NEP01_RTRIDSP_2_SOUTHASIA-FLOODS_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/NEP01.htm

Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-08-21T063620Z_01_NEP02_RTRIDSP_2_SOUTHASIA-FLOODS_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/NEP02.htm

Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-08-20T133115Z_01_TBL07_RTRIDSP_2_GEORGIA-OSSETIA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/TBL07.htm

People take shelter on the road as floodwaters from the Saptakoshi River created havoc in Sunsari August 21, 2008. At least 20,000 people were displaced and sheltered in relief camps in ...

More pictures | Galleries

Last updated:Thu Aug 21 11:42:23 2008

Background

Topics

Emergencies

NGO latest

Latest news

Related articles

Country information