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Updated December 17th, 2021 at 14:29 IST

Philippines: Nearly 100,000 people evacuated after Typhoon Rai hit southeastern region

Coast Guard personnel were seen rescuing people stranded by chest-deep waters in a southern province, where incessant rains flooded villages

Reported by: Anurag Roushan
Philippines
IMAGE: AP | Image:self
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Nearly 1,00,000 people have been evacuated after a massive typhoon hit the southeastern Philippines on Thursday, December 16. Typhoon Rai wreaked havoc and knocked down power as it swept over island provinces, reported The Associated Press (AP). Coast Guard personnel were seen rescuing people stranded by chest-deep waters in a southern province, where incessant rains flooded villages. As it swept from the Pacific Ocean onto the Siargao Islands, the typhoon strengthened further, with sustained winds of 195 kilometres per hour and gusts of up to 270 kilometres per hour, according to forecasters. There were no early reports of injuries or significant property damage, they added.

According to the disaster-response officials, nearly 10,000 villages lie in the projected route of the typhoon, which has a 400-kilometre-wide rain belt and is one of the strongest to hit the country this year. All vessels have been grounded, stranding approximately 4,000 passengers, ferry and cargo ship workers in dozens of southern and central ports, according to the coast guard.

In addition, several flights, largely domestic, were cancelled, and schools and businesses in the most susceptible areas were closed. "I am scared and praying here in my house that this stops now. The wind outside is so strong it's toppling trees,” Teresa Lozano, a resident of eastern MacArthur town told DZMM radio by telephone, as reported by The AP. 

After authorities discovered the country's first case of the Omicron variant of the Coronavirus, the disaster-response agency claimed that crowding in evacuation centres was hindering efforts to keep people safely distanced. Intensive immunisations were also suspended in places where storms were expected.

The Philippines is one of the worst-affected countries in Southeast Asia, with more than 2.8 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 50,000 fatalities. Following an increased vaccination effort that helped reduce cases to a few hundred from over 26,000 in September, quarantine restrictions have been loosened and more businesses have been allowed to reopen in recent weeks.

Philippines is prone to storms and typhoons

However, the detection of Omicron cases this week has raised the concern, and the government has warned people to avoid crowds and also urged them to get inoculated as soon as possible. It should be mentioned here that the Philippines is hit by about 20 storms and typhoons every year. The archipelago is also part of the seismically active Pacific "Ring of Fire," which makes it one of the most disaster-prone nations in the world. 

(With inputs from AP)

Image: AP

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Published December 17th, 2021 at 14:29 IST

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