FLASH UPDATE #1 – Tropical Storm Ma-On (Florita), Philippines
OVERVIEW: According to the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), Tropical Storm (TS) MA-ON (local name: Florita) continues to maintain its strength while moving slowly westward over the Philippine Sea. ?
LOCATION: The centre was estimated based on all available data 145 km East of Casiguran, Aurora (16.2 °N, 123.5 °E).?
INTENSITY: Maximum sustained winds of 75 km/h near the centre, gustiness of up to 90 km/h.?
TROPICAL CYCLONE WIND SIGNAL (TCWS): ?
- TCWS no. 2 (Minor to moderate threat to life and property): northern provinces of Region 1, 2, CAR. (full list from PAGASA)?
- TCWS no. 1 (Minimal to minor threat to life and property): rest of the provinces of Region 1, 2, and CAR; northern provinces of Region 3, CALABARZON, and 5. (full list from PAGASA)?
HAZARDS:?
- At most heavy to intense with at times torrential rains especially over areas under TCWS no. 2.?
- Severe winds (gale-force in strength) especially in areas where TCWS no. 2 is hoisted throughout the passage of TS MA-ON (Florita)?
- Under these conditions and considering the significant antecedent rainfall, scattered to widespread flooding and rain-induced landslides especially in areas that are highly or very highly susceptible to these hazards as identified in hazard maps. ?
EXPOSURE: According to the ASEAN Disaster Monitoring and Response System (DMRS), an estimated 172 people, 55 households, and $482.6K worth of buildings and infrastructure (total replacement cost) are exposed to moderate to severe damaging winds.?
BREAKDOWN OF KEY NEEDS (Of exposed vulnerable population) source: DisasterAWARE: ?
- 18,060 calories per day?
- 26 litres of water per day?
- 1 100-liter waste bins?
- 30 square metres of shelter?
PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE:?
- NDRRMC is on Alert Status: RED in preparation to the potential impacts of TS MA-ON (Florita)?
- 6 telecommunications equipment have been deployed and 46 more are deployable by the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster?
- 17M USD worth of standby funds and 480,036 family food packs worth 5.7M USD are currently available?
- Continuous monitoring and dissemination of early warning information and advisories through SMS, social media, and official channels down to the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils (LDRRMC).?
OUTLOOK:?
- TS MA-ON (Florita) will continue moving generally westward for the rest of the evening before turning west-northwestward early morning of 23 Aug. The tropical cyclone is forecast to maintain its heading until it makes its landfall in the vicinity of the east coast of Isabela or Cagayan early morning of 23 Aug (in the next 9 hours). Afterwards, the TC will traverse several provinces in Northern Luzon before emerging over the West Philippine Sea by evening of 23 Aug or early morning of 24 Aug.?
- TS MA-ON (Florita) may further intensity into a Severe Tropical Storm prior to landfall. While traversing landmass, the TC is forecast to slightly weaken and as it emerges outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility, re-intensify into a severe tropical storm and reach peak intensity of 95 km/h. ?
The AHA Centre will continue to monitor and issue necessary updates.?
DATA SOURCES
ASEAN Disaster Monitoring & Response System (DMRS); Pacific Disaster Center (PDC Global);
Philippines: NDRRMC, PAGASA;
Verified news media agencies.
