The Typhoon Goni, called “Rolly” by Filipinos, made landfall on Luzon, the most populous island of the Philippines on Sunday, Nov. 1. The consequences of the typhoon are being felt across the country. In the wake of COVID-19, there are more people than ever in danger from more than just the weather, as evacuation also escalates the risk of contracting the virus. 

According to The New York Times, the storm narrowly missed the capital of Manilla, and at least ten people have died. Around a million people were evacuated in preparation for the typhoon with around 350,000 of them sheltering in evacuation centers. 

“We are having a hard time with COVID-19, and then here comes another disaster,” said Christopher Go, an aide to President Rodrigo Duterte, according to National Public Radio. 

According to Reuters, Typhoon Goni is the world’s strongest typhoon this year, and it is the strongest typhoon to make land in the Philippines since 2013’s Haiyan Super Typhoon, which killed more than 6,000 people. Furthermore, the winds of Typhoon Goni reached around 135 miles per hour at landfall and had 165 mile per hour gusts. The typhoon has already caused landslides near the Mayon Volcano in the Albay province. Flooding has also been seen in the Quezon province which was hit the hardest by the typhoon. 

The country was prepared for the storm as the evacuations in that area had already been taking place due to Typhoon Molave in late October. Airports and ports were closed in preparation for the typhoon, and advance warning allowed farmers to save around one million tons of rice and around 45,000 tons of corn. This has done a lot to minimize the damage done to agriculture. 

Furthermore, the Red Cross has been working in cooperation with the government as they are having to contend with the pandemic and the natural disaster. The Philippines experiences about 20 typhoons a year, and Goni is the 18th typhoon to hit the Philippines this year. Climate change has done a lot to increase the danger of these storms with rising seas and deforestation being two contributing factors. Those who live in rural areas and are in poverty are the most at risk. COVID-19 has also complicated these preparations with isolation areas having to be set up to treat patients as the country has had around 380,000 infections and around 7,000 deaths due to coronavirus.

Recovery is now underway but the country is already preparing for Tropical Storm Atsani which may reach the Philippines later this week.  

Photo courtesy of RTE.IE