Typhoon Lupit Heads for Philippines; Warnings Issued (Update1)

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By Aaron Sheldrick and Francisco Alcuaz Jr.

Oct. 22 (Bloomberg) — Typhoon Lupit edged closer to the Philippines, bringing the threat of more rain and floods to the most populous island of Luzon, where more than 860 people have died in two cyclones in the past month.

While Lupit’s eye isn’t expected to make landfall for three days, its outer bandshave already reached northern Luzon. The longer it hovers near land, the more rain it may dump on areas already under water from earlier storms.

“The winds are the most dangerous when they hit the coast, but after that they weaken,” said Prisco Nilo, the administrator at the Philippines Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration. “The most casualties and damage come from the rain.”

Evacuations have been under way throughout the island all week and supplies and equipment for rescue operations continue to be sent to regions expected to be affected by Lupit. Parts of Luzon were devastated when Tropical Storm Ketsana swept through Sept. 26, followed by Typhoon Parma, causing damages of almost 30.3 billion pesos ($645 million). About 8.7 million people were affected by the storms and more than 189,000 remain in emergency shelters, according to the government.

Lupit, with maximum sustained winds of 160 kilometers (99 miles) per hour, was 350 kilometers east-northeast of the town of Aparri on the northern tip of Luzon at 4 a.m. local time today, according to the Philippines weather agency.

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