DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/08 November) – Storm signal number 4 was raised over 21 areas in the country, including Mindanao’s Dinagat Island province, as super typhoon Yolanda made landfall over Guian, Eastern Samar at 4:40 a.m., the weather bureau reported.
The typhoon made a second landfall over Dulag-Tolosa in Leyte at around 7 a.m., with maximum sustained winds of 235 kph (kilometers per hour) near the center and gustiness of up to 275 kph, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.
According to PAGASA’s Severe Weather Bulletin Number 6 issued at 5 a.m. Friday, Yolanda was located at 4 a.m. at 63 kms southeast of Guian, Eastern Samar, packing maximum sustained winds of 235 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 275 kph and moving west northwest at 39 kph, much stronger than when super typhoon Pablo made landfall in Baganga, Davao Oriental early morning of December 4, 2012.
Pablo then had maximum sustained winds of 175 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 210 kph, moving at 26 kph.
Public storm warning signals were raised over seven of Mindanao’s 26 provinces as of 11 a.m. Thursday: Signal 3 over Dinagat Islands province and Siargao Island (part of Surigao del Norte); Signal 2 over Surigao Del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Agusan del Norte and Camiguin; and Signal 1 over Misamis Oriental and Agusan del Sur.
According to the Severe Weather Bulletin 6, Signal 4 has been raised over Northern Samar, Eastern Samar, Samar, Leyte, Southern Leyte, Biliran, Northern Cebu, Cebu City, Bantayan, Camotes Islands, Northern Negros Occidental, Capiz, Aklan, Antique, Iloilo, Guimaras in the Visayas; Masbate, Ticao Island, Southern Sorsogon and Romblon in Luzon and Dinagat Islands province in Mindanao.
Signal 3 was raised over Surigao del Norte, including Siargao Island.
Signal 2 remains hoisted over Camiguin, Surigao del Sur and Agusan del Norte, while
Signal 1 remains over Agusan del Sur and Misamis Oriental.
Classes were suspended November 7 and 8 in Cagayan de Oro and Misamis Oriental towns, in the first district of Bukidnon, in the Agusan and Surigao provinces and even if no storm warning signal was raised over their provinces, in Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental. The last two were the worst hit provinces when Pablo made landfall in Baganga, Davao Oriental in December 2012.
Preemptive evacuations were also implemented in the flood-prone and landslide-proine areas in Northern Mindanao, Caraga and Davao regions. (MindaNews)