Typhoon Mangkhut: Communities in Cagayan and Isabela rush to secure their homes, crops and livestocks

As typhoon Mangkhut nears the Philippines, communities in Cagayan and Isabela rush to secure their homes, crops, and livestocks.

As of 8 am on Wednesday, September 11, the typhoon is at 1,390 kilometers East of Southern Luzon, moving West at 20 kilometer per hour (km/h). Mangkhut is packing maximum sustained winds of up to 200 km/h and gustiness of up to 245 km/h, threatening Northern Luzon. It could strengthen into a super typhoon as it enters the Philippines.

The brunt of Mangkhut is likely to be felt on Friday till Saturday. If needed, World Vision has pre-positioned relief items that can initially cater to 4,000 families. The emergency supplies include hygiene kits (toothbrush, toothpaste, laundry and bath soaps, malong, sanitary pads, nail cutter, underwear) and non-food items like blankets and mosquito nets.

Farmers take advantage of the still sunny weather to harvest rice and corn as Mangkhut nears Philippines. Cagayan and Isabela are two of the top rice producers in the country.The Department of Agriculture said on Tuesday that the typhoon might cause Php7B worth of rice crop damage.

Herbert Cabading, a farmer from Alcala, Cagayan said that the super typhoon Haima which hit his town in 2016 caused him his crops. He was able to harvest less than 50%.

“With the threat of Mangkhut, I’m harvesting my crops a week earlier. It’s difficult when a farmer loses his only source of income and so we are trying to save whatever we can,” he said.

A resident of Alcala, Cagayan trims trees with overhanging branches in anticipation of the strong winds brought by Mangkhut.


World Vision staff Fe Olonan joins the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council meeting in Isabela. LGUs are on highest alert status in preparation for the typhoon.

“Weather is still good in the province. Communities, local governments and agencies like World Vision are taking advantage of this to prepare further. So far, no typhoon warning signals have been raised in the province. We’ve been told that there are 4500 prepositioned goods and 600 for each coastal community. Liquor ban is now also imposed province-wide. Let’s pray that this typhoon doesn’t cause damage in Northern Luzon,” Olonan said.

 

Photo credits to Marvin Espayos, Douglas Chua and Herbert Cabading

—Written by Joy Maluyo, World Vision/September 12, 2018



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