Philippines, 8 Nov – A category 5 ‘super’ typhoon (Haiyan, known locally as Yolanda) has entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility and is due to make landfall on the east of the country Friday 8th November. Haiyan was assessed as having sustained wind speeds of 225kph with gusts of 250 kph near its centre and is travelling at a speed of 33kmh. Eastern Visayas, likely to be first impacted has a population of 4.1m. The storm is predicted to track across the country exiting the evening of November 8th on the west coast of the country.
The Philippine public authorities are making evacuation and prepositioning plans particularly for people in lowlying or mountainous areas where floods, landslides and storm surges are likely. An advanced UN Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team has been requested to assist the national authorities and will arrive the morning of 8th November. Two members of MapAction are deploying alongside and are en route today.
(Photo: Reuters)