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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 21) – Several areas in Luzon are no longer under tropical wind signal No. 1 and 2 as Tropical Storm Pepito continues to move toward the Western Philippine Sea, according to the latest bulletin from the state meteorological office PAGASA.
Only the western part of Pangasinan is under signal number 1, the office said in its 11 a.m. bulletin.
“Strong to near-hurricane winds will be experienced in areas under TCWS # 1,” noted PAGASA.
Signal No. 2 has been erected in La Unión, the northern part of Zambales and the western part of Pangasinan while Ilocos Sur, the rest of Pangasinan, Abra, western parts of Kalinga, Provincia de la Montaña, Nueva Vizcaya Nueva Ecija, Tarlac and the rest of Zambales are no longer under Sign # 1.
Meanwhile, light to moderate rains are expected with sometimes heavy rains over Batanes, Babuyan Islands, Zambales, Bataan, Occidental Mindoro and Palawan, the agency said.
Better climate
Most of the country, especially Visayas and Mindanao, will see better weather conditions starting Thursday, as Pepito could leave the Philippines monitoring area by then, PAGASA climate specialist Ariel Rojas told CNN Philippines’ New Day.
There is also a “very high probability” that the weather disturbance will intensify into a severe tropical storm as it heads toward central Vietnam on Thursday afternoon or evening, Rojas added.
Hundreds evacuated, villages flooded
The storm forced hundreds of people from their homes and left bridges and villages submerged in flooding.
The National Council for Disaster Risk Reduction and Management said Pepito had displaced 335 people in Aurora province, where he made landfall on Tuesday. Of them, 253 stayed in 13 evacuation centers in the province.
Jomel Cruz from the Municipal Office for Disaster Risk Reduction and Management of Macabebe, Pampanga, said that the rains brought by Pepito caused flooding in 19 of the 25 villages in the city.
However, no one from the municipality of Macabebe was evacuated, as residents planned any floods in advance.
“They’re used to it. Every year, they prepare for the great flood, ”Cruz told CNN Philippines’ News.
[Translation: They are used it. Every year, they prepare for heavy floods.]But the main evacuation centers are ready to house those in need of temporary shelters, Cruz added.
He assured that the local government is providing aid to the most vulnerable sectors during disasters.
In Quezón province, national highways remained impassable for small and large vehicles due to waist-deep flooding, according to Governor Danilo Suárez. In an interview with CNN Philippines’ The Source, he said that in the meantime, only trucks would be able to pass through these areas, but expressed his hope that the water would recede by the end of the day so that the local government can bring food to the evacuees.
Although the rains have stopped in Quirino province, two bridges are still submerged, according to Governor Dakila Cua.
“One is the (bridge) that goes to Manglad, the other goes to San Pedro, mountainous areas of our province,” he told ‘La Fuente’.
Cua said no casualties have been reported in the province as the local government carried out a preventive evacuation on Tuesday. Local officials will assess the damage to agriculture after the storm.
Carolyn Bonquin, CNN correspondent in the Philippines, contributed to this report
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