Typhoon Bebinca strikes Philippines, Japan, and soon China

Coast guard personnel and rescue workers evacuate residents as heavy rains brought by Typhoon Bebinca trigger flooding in the town of Rizal, Philippines, September 14, 2024 HANDOUT / AFP

Falling trees killed six people in the Philippines after a fierce tropical storm brought strong winds and floods, officials said on Sunday, September 15.

Typhoon Bebinca slammed into the central and southern Philippines on Friday before leaving the country before dawn on Saturday.

Four children on the way home from school in Malabang municipality in the southern province of Lanao del Sur were killed Friday when a huge tree fell on the motorised tricycle they were riding during the storm, municipal police official Christina Obina told Agence France-Presse (AFP). “The wind was so strong, causing the tree to be uprooted,” Obina said.

In Zamboanga Peninsula, at least 200 kilometres away from Lanao del sur, a two-year-old girl and a woman were killed in two separate incidents due to trees falling on their houses, the regional disaster official Angelito Casinillo told AFP.

Bebinca has displaced around 13,000 people and damaged roads and other infrastructure in the Southeast Asian nation. The national disaster council said the typhoon also left the country with at least 11 injured and two missing.

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Bebinca also passed through Japan’s Amami island overnight, carrying gusts of up to 198 kilometers per hour, the Japan Meteorological Agency said, warning of an increased risk of landslides due to heavy rain.

Flights canceled in Shanghai

All flights at Shanghai’s two main airports were cancelled on Sunday as authorities in the Chinese megacity prepared for the strong typhoon, with its high winds and heavy rain.

Typhoon Bebinca is expected to make landfall along a swath of China’s densely populated eastern seaboard between Sunday night and Monday morning, according to Beijing’s emergency management ministry. Bebinca’s expected landfall will come during the Mid-Autumn Festival public holiday.

State broadcaster CCTV reported that all flights at Shanghai’s two main airports would be cancelled from 8 pm on Sunday because of the storm. “Affected by Typhoon Bebinca, the traffic capacity of Shanghai’s Pudong and Hongqiao airports has decreased today,” CCTV said. “Flight adjustments at the two main airports will be promptly released to the public in accordance with the impact of the typhoon,” it said. Officials held a meeting on Saturday to “research and deploy flood and typhoon control work in key areas,” it added.

The emergency management ministry said in a statement on Saturday that Bebinca would cause “heavy to torrential” downpours with “local heavy or extremely heavy rainstorms” from Sunday to Tuesday.

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China’s railway operator is expecting passengers to take 74 million trips during the holiday, state news agency Xinhua reported on Saturday.

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The emergency management ministry said officials must “pay close attention to the development of the typhoon,” adding that “many people will be travelling, mobility will be high and safety risks will be prominent.”

The water resources ministry launched on Saturday a level-four emergency response – the lowest in a tiered system – for flooding in Shanghai and the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui, according to Xinhua.

The weather office issued orange typhoon warnings – the second-highest in a four-tier system – for several districts in Shanghai and areas of nearby provinces on Sunday. It advised that people refrain from gathering in large numbers, boats return to port and rickety structures be strengthened against high winds.

Shanghai municipal authorities urged residents on Sunday to “strengthen efforts to guard against harmful effects of the typhoon on high-altitude work, transportation, infrastructure and agriculture.”

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Passenger shipping lines were also scheduled to be suspended in Shanghai from Sunday, according to an official statement on the social media account of the municipal port and shipping development centre.

Le Monde with AFP

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