Evacuations in full swing as Philippines braces for Nesat

Manila: Authorities cancelled classes in schools and colleges, grounded 41 local flights and halted dozens of ferry and bus trips as category four typhoon, Nesat, locally known as Pedring, gathered strength in the Pacific Ocean, heading towards the Philippines' eastern seaboard.

Officials on Monday said Nesat was 350km off Aurora, Casiguran, in central Luzon and had winds speeds of 120kph near its centre, with gusts of up to 150kph.

Six fishermen were missing and more than 100,000 people ordered to evacuate as the powerful typhoon brought heavy rains and strong winds to the Philippines, the officials said.

In evacuations yesterday, more than 50,000 people were moved from their houses in Albay province, according to Governor Joey Salceda.

"This is a pre-emptive evacuation. These people are residing in flood- and landslide-prone areas," he said, adding that his office was targeting to evacuate a total of 111,930 people.

Stranded

Hundreds of travellers were stranded at ports and airports because local planes and inter-island ferries were grounded yesterday morning.

Authorities began collating reports of missing fishermen, including reported fatalities, as typhoon Nesat remained in the Pacific Ocean. However, with its wide 650km diameter, it dumped 15 to 25 millimetres of rains per hour on the eastern side of some 40 provinces located in a wide area of the country, from central Philippines to northern, central, and southern Luzon, said National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRMC) head Benito Ramos.

Local government officials in 40 affected areas began disaster preparations. Evacuation centres were opened as residents near bodies of water, in low-lying and mountainous areas were told to leave their homes, said Ramos.

Storm signal No.2 was raised on 14 of the 40 affected provinces. Metro Manila, although facing the country's western side, was not spared of Nesat's effects with a continuous downpour and overflowing rivers, said Ramos.

Typhoon Nesat was predicted to make landfall with stronger winds at 180kph in Aurora and Isabela in northern Luzon last night or this morning, said Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) head Graciano Yumul.

— With inputs from DPA