STORM SIGNALS UP

AS ‘SANTI’ NEARS 

New storm to cut across Central Luzon over All Saints’ weekend

DATELINE PHILIPPINES

29 October 2009 08:00

MANILA, Philippines – Storm warning signals began going up Thursday as typhoon “Santi” (Mirinae) strengthened approaching the country, promising a wet commemoration of All Saints’ Day with the storm projected to make landfall on Saturday before cutting across Central Luzon.

Early Thursday morning, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said Santi was 1,080 kilometers east of Casiguran, Aurora, moving west at 26 kilometers per hour with winds of 150 kph gusting to 185 kph.

Weather forecasters warned Filipinos, who flock to cemeteries to honor their dead on November 1, that Santi is expected to bring heavy rains 

The weather bureau has raised public storm warning signal No. 1, meaning winds of 30-60 kph are expected, over Aurora, Isabela, northern Quezon and Polillo Island.

In the past month, the onslaught of storms “Ondoy” (Ketsana), which dumped a month’s worth of rain on Metro Manila and outlying provinces on September 26, and “Pepeng” (Parma), which crisscrossed Northern Luzon for a week and triggered deadly landslides and massive floods, killed close to 1,000 people and left hundreds of thousands homeless.

Many areas hit by the two storms have still to recover.

A third storm, “Ramil,” swerved from Northern Luzon toward Japan last weekend.