Tropical Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda about to slam the Phillipines

Wow. Eastern Visayas got hit. Hard.

Nowhere to flee within the Visayas. Guess one might have a chance if one could get to northern Luzon, especially the mountains near Baguio City.

But I'm really worried that 1,200 could be a low number, and I hope I'm wrong.

 

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/08/typhoon-haiyan-biggest-storms

Some take out thoughts and remembering that this one hit 380 kph...

According to the Philippine government, the area's typhoons have been getting stronger. "Menacingly, the Filipino typhoons are getting stronger and stronger, especially since the 90s," said Romulo Virola, head of the government's national statistics board. "From 1947 to 1960, the strongest typhoon to hit us was Amy in December 1951 with a highest wind speed recorded at 240kph in Cebu. From 1961 to 1980, Sening was the record holder with a highest wind speed of 275kph in October 1970. During the next 20 years, the highest wind speed was recorded by Anding and Rosing at 260kph. In the current millennium, the highest wind speed has soared to 320kph recorded by Reming in Nov-Dec 2006. If this is due to climate change, we better be prepared for even stronger ones in the future."

Earlier this year the World Meteorological Organisation calculated that tropical cyclones had killed nearly 170,000 people in 2000-2010, and affected more than 250 million, causing economic damage of $380bn.

 

So if it's not due to climate change we don't need to be prepared?

 

Uh, yeah. Something like that.

If it's not due to climate change but is simply a spike in the statistics that can/should revert to the norm in the future, one likely would not need to be prepared for even stronger storms in the future.

That's the way the logic goes, anyway, without getting into the fight you're trying to pick re: climate change.

 

The Chinese really believe that charity begins at home.

 

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2013/11/yphoon-haiyan-devastation.html

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/12/typhoon-haiyan-map_n_4256302.html

If this baby would hit the OBX...

 

I think the Outer Banks has been hit enough over the years.

As slow as help and aid have been getting to Filipinos, I fear how bad it would be if Ferdinand Marcos were still in office ... or one of his followers. Marcos was too busy embezzling and trying to whack those who opposed him to worry about such petty issues as thousands, perhaps millions, of his people suffering from a natural disaster.

 

The destruction is so total, getting the relief in is just about physically impossible, at least in bulk. No airports functioning at night and for sure no harbors working.

 

That pic as just to show the overall size of this thing. Cincinnati would be getting whaled upon while the eye was in Kitty Hawk.