Typhoon Signal No. 4 raised over 6 Philippine provinces 20 times the land area of Singapore

Residents evacuated as Goni expected to hammer country's east from November 1

Published: October 31, 2020 22:50 Last updated: November 01, 2020 08:33 Gulf News Report

Radar image tracking supertyphoon Goni as of 10am Philippine time (6am UAE) on November 1, 2020 Image Credit: Pagasa/DOST

Update:

Weathermen reported that at 10am today November 1, 2020 (6am UAE) the center of the eye of Typhoon Goni was located based on all available data, including Daet Doppler Radar over the coastal waters of Pasacao, Camarines Sur or 30 km West Southwest of Pili, Camarines Sur (13.5°N, 123.0°E).

Storm Signal No. 4 had been raised over Metro Manila, as the supertyphoon hammered a huge swathe of eastern Philippines en route to the Philippine capital.

Six provinces in eastern Philippines with about 5 million residents in an area at least 20 times bigger than Singapore are expected to take a direct hit from tropical storm Goni's fury (locally known as "Rolly") as it makes landfall on Sunday, according to an 11pm bulletin from Filipino weathermen on Satruday.

Tropical Cyclone Weather Signal (TCWS) No. 4 was hoisted over portions of Albay province as Goni drew close to the island of Catanduanes, and also threatening the eastern part of the Camarines Sur Province, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) stated in its latest update.

'World's strongest typhoon this 2020'

Evacuation of thousands of residents were ordered in the southern part of the main Luzon island as the "the world's strongest typhoon" this 2020 approaches the Southeast Asian nation. At least 3.5 million people will take the pummeling from the supertyphoon from Sunday.

Goni, with 215 kph (133 miles) sustained winds and gusts of up to 265 kph (164 mph), is seen barreling towards Bicol region in eastern Philippines on November 1, 2020.

Equivalent to Category 5 hurricane

Once its peak winds surpassed 150 mph (241 km/h), it qualified as a "super typhoon," which is equivalent to a strong Category 4 hurricane in the Atlantic. But it grew even more intense, comparable to a strong Category 5. Its leap in strength occurred over waters about 2 to 3 degrees (1 to 1.5 Celsius) warmer than normal. Such rapid intensification is made more likely by human-caused climate change, which has raised ocean temperatures globally.

It is the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines since Haiyan, which killed more than 6,300 people in November 2013 in the neighbouring province of Leyte.