Over 600,000 evacuate as Typhoon Ruby hits land

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – Over 600,000 individuals moved to safer ground ahead of the landfall of Typhoon Ruby (international name: Hagupit) Saturday, December 6.

As of 6pm Saturday – 3 hours before the typhoon hit land – the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said that at least 132,351 families or 652,082 individuals in 6 regions conducted pre-emptive evacuation: 

• Calabarzon – 160 families or 766 individuals
• Bicol – 32,145 families or 159,346 individuals
• Western Visayas – 3,280 families or 16,141 individuals 
• Central Visayas – 11,869 families or 55,344 individuals 
• Eastern Visayas – 69,657 families or 347,835 individuals 
• Caraga – 15,330 families or 656,082 individuals

Of these evacuees, 10,000 stay “in churches and multipurpose halls of parishes in the Archdiocese of Palo,” Caritas Manila said, citing data from the Catholic Church’s social action arm.

Ruby hit land in Dolores town, Eastern Samar, Saturday evening and is expected to make 5 more landfalls in Masbate, Sibuyan Island, Romblon Island, Tablas Island, and Oriental Mindoro over the next 2 days. It was forecast to affect around 50 provinces.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development estimates that a total of 1.473 million individuals will be affected by the typhoon. 

Ahead of Ruby’s landfall, a total of 938 evacuation centers have been opened to accommodate those in vulnerable areas, Social Welfare and Development Secretary Dinky Soliman told ANC in an interview early morning Sunday, December 7.

As of 5am Saturday, the DSWD said a total of 318,532 family food packs were prepositioned in various regions. 

In a report released Saturday evening, DSWD said standby funds of P68.366 million have been reserved for affected regions for food items and other necessities. 

Pre-emptive, forced evacuations

Provinces still in the process of recovering from the effects of the deadly Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) just a year ago are once again expected to bear the brunt of the typhoon. (READ: LGUs prepare for Typhoon Ruby) 

In Tacloban, the city government enforced a mandatory evacuation of at least 45,000 residents living in areas vulnerable to storm surges. A total of 17 evacuation centers were opened to accommodate them. (READ: Village hit hardest by Haiyan evacuates ahead of #RubyPH and Ruby evacuation: Thousands flock to churches)

The same was observed in the town of Dolores and the province Northern Samar. 

Even before Ruby could hit land, the town of Pambujan in Northern Samar already experienced flash floods and storm surges, forcing local officials to implement emergency evacuation. 

Other residents of the Samar provinces, meanwhile, chose to pitch their own tents in highways rather than staying in evacuation centers. 

In Bicol, the province of Albay aims to evacuate over 600,000 people at risk not just of the typhoon but possible landslides on Mayon Volcano that may come as a result of intense rainfall.  

Two provinces – Albay and Camarines Sur – have already declared a state of calamity.

Netizens report

As local governments brace for Typhoon Ruby (Hagupit), netizens came together to report what has been happening on the ground.

Some residents along the coastal areas of Brgy Kilim, Baybay, Leyte preferred to stay in their homes despite warnings. A netizen from the Facebook group Typhoon #Hagupit Info & Photos reported that some residents wanted to protect their belongings. – Angela Casauay and Fritzie Rodriguez/Rappler.com