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Hurricane Sandy is like a Signal 3 Typhoon in the Philippines

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By Raïssa Robles

Hurricane Sandy is like our Typhoon Signal Number 3, according to Renito Paciente, officer-in-charge of Pagasa’s marine meteorological services section.

He explained to me that Hurricane Sandy has sustained winds of 74 to 95 mph (miles per hour). In the metric system which we use, this would be equivalent to 119 to 153 kilometers per hour (kph).

In the US, Sandy is a Category 1 hurricane, but if something similar to Sandy were to batter Philippine shores, Pagasa would raise Signal No. 3, defined as “Tropical cyclone winds of 100 kmh (62 mph) to 185 kmh (115 mph) expected within the next 18 hours.”

I became curious at how powerful Sandy really was, since the American media had taken to calling it a “Frankenstorm”. And then photos like the one below were shared online by New York City residents, looking so eerily similar to scenes in  Typhoon Frank (2008), Typhoon Ondoy (2009),  Typhoon Sendong (2011) and even during the torrential rains last August:

Flooding caused by Hurricane Sandy in Lower East Side, Manhattan posted on Twitter

Flooding in Manila Underpass caused by heavy rains in August 2012. PHOTO posted by Charie Villa on Twitter

Difference between a hurricane and a typhoon

Paciente said the intensity of Sandy is similar to that of Typhoon Frank (which is just a bit stronger with sustained winds of 100 mph) and Typhoon Pedring (85 mph).

But he added that we have been battered by far stronger typhoons such as Loleng (International codename Bab) in 1998 and Typhoon Pepeng (International Code Name Parma) in 2008, both with sustained winds of 120 mph (190 kmh).

Compared to our Typhoon Loleng and Pepeng, however, Typhoon Katrina which devastated  the US in 2005 started out as an even stronger storm. It was classified as a Category 5 Atlantic hurricane with sustained winds of 175 mph (280 kmh) and then downgraded to Category 3 when it hit Louisiana and Mississippi.

It was also my chance to ask Paciente why these natural phenomena had different names. Paciente explained to me that there are three “basins’ in which they are formed. When these are formed in the Atlantic Ocean or basin, they are called HURRICANES. When these are formed in the Indian Ocean, they are referred to as CYCLONES. And when formed in the Pacific Ocean, they are known as TYPHOONS.

I asked him to explain to me what I had read in the Seattle Times about the origin of Sandy – that it formed initially somewhere near the Caribbean. I asked Paciente to explain the relation between the temperature of the sea to the formation of Sandy because Seattle Times said:

One reason Sandy may have stayed tropical so long was the unusually warm waters of the Gulf Stream, a river of warm water that flows from the Caribbean up into the North Atlantic. It was 5 to 9 degrees warmer than normal for this time of year. And as a tropical system, Sandy fed on those warm waters and kept traveling north, Masters said. That could account for the last-minute boost in speed, too, that Sandy had as it neared shore, accelerating to 28 mph.

Paciente explained to me that in our part of the world – sa atin 26 degrees celsius or more ang sea surface temperature sa Pacific para bumuo ng typhoon.

No wonder the rise in deadly storms has been blamed on the rise of sea temperature which in turn has been blamed on climate change, I told him. Paciente added that it is not just the temperature at sea that helps bring about storms, but also the temperature of our surroundings and in fact the “earth temperature.”

There will inevitably be scientists on opposing sides who will make or break the connection between Sandy and climate change. Former President George W. Bush had refused to sign the Kyoto Protocol that would force the US to reduce greenhouse gas emissions according to a set timetable. Bush said it would cost the US economy too much.

Sandy is about to cost the US billions of dollars. Still, the jury will continue to be out on whether Sandy will make the US think long and hard about seriously taking up measures to reduce greenhouse gases.

In closing, I want to quote the lead paragraph of the Seattle Times news story. It said:

Hurricane Sandy seems straight out of the latest Hollywood apocalyptic blockbuster.

If Sandy is indeed apocalyptic, what does it say about the Philippine situation. We not only regularly have storms like Sandy, once in awhile we have stronger ones. On top of that we have earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis.

But we do have lovely islands formed eons ago by the violence of the earth. We have in short a Garden of Paradise in Hell.

Life is really more fun in the Philippines.

Meanwhile, to my kababayans living along the path of Sandy, take care.

Back here, Paciente said the Philippines has five more storms coming before yearend of varying intensity. He said the weather bureau has no way of predicting any of them might be like Sandy.

On the average, the Philippines has 20 storms a year. In comparison, the Atlantic Coast of the US has been affected by as many as 16 storms of varying intensity a year, striking between June and end-November.

Comments

  1. It is just natural the HURRICANE SANDY that struck the US can be denominated with a higher degree of devastation compared to the Philippines, although comparatively speaking the strength in number is much lower than those of the Philippines, Their value is 42.86 to 1 (USD-Php)

  2. We should learn from the WISDOM OF THE AGES – as already mentioned the EARTH WILL STAY and man will not be as lucky. So what do we do to prolong our stay? WE SHOULD NOT TAMPER WITH NATURE – LEAVE THE TREES ON THE MOUNTAINS THEY GUARD AGAINST ONSLAUGHTS OF HARSH TYPHOONS. AND MORE IMPORTANTLY DO NOT FLATTEN THE MOUNTAINS. THEY ARE THE NATURAL WINDBREAKERS.

    SANDY WAS NOT JUST A MOVIE.

    The Philippines is a Garden of Eden, We should keep it that way.

    • Well, in one respect, I suppose Phil heart is in the right place. In another, with millions of people living in unhealthy conditions in the Philippines, I ask “WTF?” And Romney proposes tax breaks for wealthy Americans.

      I’d rather the money be spent getting Mindanao on its feet rather than the East Coast of America.

      I swear, we live in an absurd world, as in crazy, surreal, downright weird.

      • well, it’s just a modest amount, but Phil has to give back somehow…..also, there are lots of filipino-americans living in that area of US, it’s like Phil govt’s way of helping them too.

        • ahhh, good point. Yes, and it is also a signal that “things are very different now in the Philippines.” Which may encourage more travel and investment. Thanks for waking me up. I withdraw my ridiculous outburst of indignant criticism.

  5. THE END MAY BE NEAR, BUT IT IS US HUMANS WHO MAY DISAPPEAR

    Filipinos could easily relate to Sandy the Frankenstorm, having undergone similar situations before.

    This had led some to state that perhaps the end is near, and we must repent.

    Back in high school, someone taught me about Revelation and end times. I spent a great deal of time deciphering who could be the Anti Christ. Was Gorbachev’s birthmark on his forehead the sign? Ronald Wilson Reagan had six letters in each name. 666!

    On the other end of the spectrum, local leftists called national democrats (nat-dems) were predicting that it is the inevitable destiny of societies to become communist, and that capitalism was on the decline. I angered a number of them by saying Marxism is just a religion – you had to believe in it to become true.

    Recently, Rep Socrates from Palawan was interviewed saying the recent flooding in Manila was due to the support for the RH bill. He even quoted a “visionary”. I wonder if he crafts legislation based on oracles?

    I will not intend to disprove/prove it either way. That cannot be done. It’s up to the individual’s beliefs and worldview.

    As I grow older, I prefer sticking to facts. And being politically correct, instead of looking for ideologies or religions.

    Now consider these:

    1.Humans have an average lifespan of about 7-8 decades, while the earth and the universe has been in existence for billions of years. Much of what we know as countries and continents were formed through violent phenomenon such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and strong storms.

    It’s in the nature of things to have these things happen, and although the latest events seem to defy historical patterns, we must remember we are only comparing it to recorded history. And that’s only a few centuries. Im pretty sure radical changes in weather and geology have happened before.

    2.The warming of the oceans is messing up everything, creating bigger storms, changing patterns. And the evidence is mounting that carbon emissions do have an impact on global weather. Thus, the human species may be unique in the sense that it’s capable of destroying itself.

    3.It’s arrogance to say the world is coming to an end, just because us humans will be having a lot of problems in the years to come. Yes, the human race may become extinct, but the earth will just be fine. Plants and animals may look different thousands of years from now, but they will still be around. It’s us humans who may be gone.

    • I am somewhat confused reading NT and Revelation. End of times? Apostles asked their Master when will it be the end of the world and He just said “Not even I know but only the Father.” Gets mo? He was still on earth before rising into Heaven. When He arrived there and His Father gave Him all powers over everything, did He get the power to “end the world” by that time? His Father sharing with Him the powers? What’s everybody’s take on this?

      Well, maybe just stop thinking about it and just move on…

      • Leona, indeed Jesus told his disciples the time nor the hour no man knows but Jesus has told us the signs. 1st wars and rumors of wars(this is happening right this very moment) 2. Famine and pestilence(these are also happening) 3. earthquake in divers places( imagine the frequency earthquakes are happening.) These are precedents before the big event. Verse 15 of Mathew 24 is the thing to watch. v.15 When you shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel, (He made sure you get what he meant. Jesus said whoso reads let him understand. The book of Daniel is a long story and if you have not been studying your bible as Jesus wants you to, you will never understand. But here is something you may be able to catch up with.To make it short and you can make your own follow-up.
        In Daniel 9:27 he talks about the Anti Christ. A world leader who will play a role in making peace in the middle east. Tobe specific a seven year peace treaty which will be signed by some ten nations. This is described in Revelation as the ten horns which are ten kings or ten leaders.( These could be Muslim countries around Israel, we just watch as events will soon follow these catastrophes or prophesies are happening right before our very eyes. After the US elections time will happen so fast. But don’t worry Jesus will give us enough time to prepare as He has given us for the last 2000 years. I hope you will make your reading and prayer for wisdom from the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus Christ as He promised in John 14:26. GBY

    • So what you are saying is that “they” are saying is that New York is suffering because of the scar on Gorbachev’s head. Died laughing, really I did . . . Here’s to cockroaches and rats, the real survivors, the real owners of this planet. We are just stupid big creatures, rather like dinosaurs, blundering around with brains that put 2 and 2 together and come up with Gorgachev’s scar.

  6. What is the purpose of nature in bringing so much havoc and devastation to the land of the brave? In the Philippines the Sierra Madre shields Manila and other highly urbanized area from the Pacific bred super typhoons. In the US the Adirondack and Catskill mountains in New York State cannot help before New York City and nearby areas are hit by Atlantic bred hurricanes. Is this not a kind of discrimination?

  7. According to Wikipedia, the International Energy Agency ranks the US as worlds second top polluter in 2010, next to China, in terms of total CO2 emissions – 8.2M and 5.4M tons per year, respectively. But in terms of per capita, China and US emit 6.2 tons and 17.6 tons of CO2 per year, respectively.

    It appears that US is the world’s worst polluter which brings so much health hazards to its populace in exchange to economic benefits (kuno!). In 2010 the US economic bubble had already burst. Maybe due to pollution the American politicians and businessmen had addled their brains too much which brought US to the present economic despair. And it seems that nature has also intervened to bring US on it’s knees and force it to rethink its position as best contributor to global warming.

    • I fear you assign human thought patterns to pollution and storms, as if they could carry out a vendetta against American consumptive greed. Worries me some, but I am comforted in knowing you are ordinarily sane and even bright. Economic cycles are not new, they come and go, and this one is no different than most, taking five years to get America from kneeling back to feet.

      American politicians have had their brains addled by mass media and the expediency of knowing that sensationalist deceits sell well, and garner votes. So the slippery slope of political poison is steep and a plummet over the cliff of economic ruin is but a standoff away, over the budget.

      As for pollution, it is a creature of production and wealth, that many of us enjoy. The comforts of computers and refrigerators and cars the suck gas are parked perhaps in your house or driveway, too. It is also technology that can provide the solution if the addle-brained leaders play it right. If they are slow, we’ll all be swapping our computers and cars for rubber boats and storm shelters.

  8. of all the philippine article about sandy, this is the one i liked most because its not just informative but it made sense to me as a filipino. thanks

  9. In terms of rainfall hurricane Sandy might be similar to typhoon in the Philippines.
    However, it’s not only hurricane Sandy coming from Atlantic ocean travelling towards northeast that battered the US Eastern seaboard. There was also a cold front coming from north towards the East. Pressures from both storms augmented the hurricane force becoming a Nor’Easter which caused most of the damage inland. Try imagining strength of typhoon 7 at least.

    I rode the storm yesterday prior to closing of all major highways. Road was pleasantly clear with few cars travelling but with the strstrong wind my car sometimes swayed by intermittent gush and moderate amount of rain. Drove again same route half an hour ago, many fallen old big trees along the roads, some detours due to close streets,still few cars, wind and rain milder. In previous blog, I posted that I was standing on the boardwalk in front Revel hotel in Atlantic city. There is a picture roaming in the web showing the destroyed northside section of the boardwalk. Wish my iPhone has ability to post the picture showing the damage boardwalk. This affected boardwalk area was less than 50 feet north of where I was standing watching the high waves before the eye of the storm arrived.

    have experienced in childhood in the Philippines driving around, curious, nosy and adventurous, been inside and outside the house during heavy typhoons. Big difference is typhoons have strong winds with lots of rain, this Nor’easter/hurricane has ear popping sound of strong winds and less rain. Our neighbor’s old tall pine tree was uprooted at 12:19 AM EST which woke me up and crushed into his yard shed.

    We don’t have power in our suburban house since last night arrival of the eye of the storm and have to go to my other home in center city with electric power.

    Very timely, I was pondering of posting on this experience and probably by Raissa’s intuition on timely national topics wrote this blog. Thanks Raissa for this blog, was able to record my personal experience before and after the US Frankeenstorm of the century.

    First time I experience such driving in hurricane superstorm unlike in a snowstorm, could not drive around because the roads were impassable.

    Most of all, thank God, few lives were lost because the public were forewarned in advance. My airline already called me the replacement flight of my cancelled trip last night to Manila.

    Be safe to all!

      • Joe
        Atlantic city finally reopened. Some streets are still impassable, difficult to play “live Monopoly”, I just took pictures of empty boardwalk.

        Just went back to same spot I stood before the storm. too messy, So many destroyed homes. Usually casinos are filled to the rims with gamblers, tonight they are eerily empty.

        Did not drink Kickapoo joy but splurging on single malt Mcallan.

        Joe, my comments in your blog with my iPhone have not posted. Guess your server does not accept mobile posts.

    • @sir johnny lin please take care. dont drive just keep inside your house. prayers for you and your family safety.

    • Johnny@6

      I think it will take much more than Hurricane Sandy to bring you down. Nevertheless, an ounce of care is always welcome.

    • The difference too is Sandy is enormously wide it would have engulf the whole Phil islands and it landed during the full moon which is high tide,downtown nyc have about 14 ft of water surge from the ocean.we did survive Sandy with a few damage on the roof shingles,otherwise we are all safe.

  10. Sandy’s seriousness was based on how big it was in terms of coverage area like covering entire Philippines from as far south in Mindanao up to southern China and HK ! In terms of strength, it is absolutely correct as only equivalent to category 3, but it coincided with High tide also and there was also another storm from northwest with cold winds and merging with Sandy, so storm Surge is inundating wide areas with Delaware as the state hit hard where storm eye landed !

  11. Do we have a special law against looters and/or looting? Murder in the Penal Code if committed “on occasion of any of the calamities like: innundation, fire, explosion, shipwreck, stranding of a vessel,derailment upon a railroad, fall of airship; or during earthquake, eruption of a volcano, destructive cyclone, epidemic or other public calamity, is all punished by reclusion perpetua [to death]. If the killing is without of any of the above, guilty only of homicide. Punishable by imprisonment to 20 years. Arts. 248-249.

    I do not know of any criminal law or ordinance against looting and looters committed during those attendant circumstances above.

    What should be the penalty ? Decapitation of hands or fingers? In old Japan or some countries, tales said so. It is really so unforgiving that others are suffering under such calamities and here looters do their looting on the poor victims already, either by killing or taking away or appropriating what is not their own. Should such kinds be shot on the spot?
    Maybe yes, they should. Mercy is beyond them.

    Should we have such a law [if we don’t have it] licensing policemen or innocents to shoot them on the spot as self defense of lives and properties? I believe it is right to have such a law. One reason is: we cannot outlaw calamities but we can outlaw looters and looting.

    • Btw, a long time ago, a congressman proposed to outlaw “calamities.” Maybe due to the western movie Calamity Jane! … hehehe. I saw it too. Tanda na!

      • Per Mr. Hilarion Henares, Jr. on the The Philippine Post – August 7, 1999, it was a Congressman Vera who proposed the outlawing of typhoons.

        • @matanda…. Excuse PO ….do you mean outlawing illegal circumstances like thief or robbery during typhoons?

    • @mam Leona …… Robbery during special circumstances , like during ship wrecked or when there was a train or bus mishaps and lootings happened especially when perpetuated by the policemen/rescuers.. ..Can we not EQUATE looting into a robbery mam@ Leona ?

      • @victin…equate “looting” into robbery or equate “robbery” into looting as to the imposable penalty? Or what do you intend to “equate?”

        Looting is actually robbery or stealing. Circumstances when committed may differ. That’s the reason a “higher” penalty maybe given when looting is committed like: (1) a person drowning during “a flood” and a rescuer robs his Rolex Watch and drowns the victim instead. It differs (2) when the person is just walking inside a shopping Mall and he is robbed of his watch. Both examples should not have the same penalty. No. 1 should have a harsher penalty than No. 2.

        The penalty provisions given from Penal Code refers to murder, when committed. Looting or stealing [robbery] is not covered but should have a special provision under similar circumstances. That’s why sometimes authorities says: SHOOT TO KILL ALL LOOTERS.

  12. “We have in short a Garden of Paradise in Hell.”

    “Life is really more fun in the Philippines.”

    The Eye of the storm in the P.I.
    1. MARCOS DICTATOR, the greatest thief of all times. Found GUILTY of the CRIME COMMITTED IN THE P.I. BUT NOT IN THE PHILIPPINES. THEY NOW LIVE LIKE KINGS AND QUEENS OUT OF THEIR STOLEN/ILL-GOTTEN WEALTH. EVEN ELECTED BY THE PEOPLE IN PUBLIC SERVICE. THEY CAN BUY JOURNALIST, MEDIA, NEWS EDITORS, VOTES, JUDGES and almost about anything. THAT’S IS WHY, Life is more FUN in the PHILIPPINES for CRIMINALS and THIEVES…
    2. ENRILE, MARTIAL LAW ARCHETIC…
    3. ESTRADA, EX-CONVICT running again for PUBLIC office
    4. ARROYO, another FAKE LEADER, THIEF
    5. AND MANY MORE LIKE the ABOVE…

    • you got it right my friend…!!!

      PILIPINO DIN AKO AT NAKAKARAMDAM AKO NANG GALIT AT PAGKA BWISIT SA MGA TAONG BINANGGIT MO…PERO GANITO NA LANG YATA TAYONG MGA ORDINARYONG PILIPINO..WALANG MAGAGAWA LABAN SA MGA TAONG YAN…IPINAGPAPASA DIYOS KO NA LANG SILA…ISA ISA RIN SILANG MAMATAY NO?..KAHIT NA GANO SILA KAYAMAN..

      REGARDS,

      • @ reymazon,

        Dapat din sana natin isipin na may kasalanan din tayo dahil madali tayo makalimot at magpatawad sa mga taong hindi naman nagsisisi at tumatanggi sa mga kasalanan nilang ginawa. Dapat di na huwag natin silang ihalan sa darating na halalan at dapat na huwag nang ibenta ang sagradong BOTO. Tanggapin ang kahirapan at huwag padala sa kakarampot na perang ibinayad sa sagradong Boto.

        NO to VOTE BUYING para wala nang makaupong kandidatong Mandarambong at Magkaroon tayo nang Opisyal tulad ni late D.I.L.G. sec. Robredo….

        • Dapt lang mag campaig tayo no to vote buying. aya lang ang mga taong nag benta nang kanilang boto ay iyong 1, hindi gumagamit nang internet, 2. young mga mahirap na nawala na talagang pag asa sa ating mga government official. They don’t expect to receive any benefits from them or they don’t see how basic services could really reach them. Kaya mabuti pa we erase them from the voting population kaya lang it will also deny them their right to suffrage. The only thing left is to educate most of our people para they will understand that suffrage is for us to choose politicians who are sincere in their public service. That is very hard to find right now but change may come in the years to come. Imagine how long is can this be realized?

  13. The Frankenstorm is one historic storm to be recorded in the USA history due to many factors that were never seen by meteorologists, rare occurrence. Although it is just comparable to signal # 3 in the PH it has some unnatural elements that go with it. There was the pressure that blocked the hurricane end resulting in the coupling up of the storm and the wintry cold air plus the effect of the full moon that affects also the low and high tide, this being the high tide. This also covers 800sq m. of areas carrying with it 12 in. of rain, 2 ft. of snow , winds and said to be ” the total that is greater than the sum of the individual parts” Historic too, because it almost destroyed the richest and most populated part in the U.S. The most interesting part is the closure of the NYSE that was only close once in its history due to the disastrous 9/11. I am not forcing my nonreligious views/ beliefs/ on anyone but isn’t this telling us something? Whether it is climate change or just a specific storm is not what it is all about. T here are Earth Changes happening that we don’t take seriously or simply never know because we take them as ordinary occurrences and we never know the difference. We will never know that unless we are being told. To sum up, these changes are going on globally most unknown to us maybe because of various reasons{ so many). As for the reason why many chose to stay in their homes , I can take a guess, it’s because of comfort in their own homes and confidence that they they can ride it out. Looting only happens on the streets, stores, groceries but not necessarily in the homes unless when total chaos, hunger , lost of gov control and apocalypse event announcement happens. Who knows, maybe OBAMA will tell…. wink*~) Take care CPMERS and Raissa family.

  14. I see these events described as wrath of God. More are coming I believe. These are signs of the end as Mathew 24 describes. When you shall see all these things, see that it is near. Unless we repent we shall all perish.

  15. Agence France-Presse reports. “Sandy turns New York into a disaster zone.” It also said:

    “Tens of thousands of people ignored appeals by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg to leave the districts at risk.

    “Authorities issued a mandatory evacuation order for 375,000 people at risk from a storm surge predicted to be over 11 feet (3.5 meters), but the majority decided to brave it out.”

    Some say “only in the Philippines”. I say “also in the States”.

    Some say “maybe for different reasons”. But I say “for the same reason”. And the reason is because of looters.

    There are two breeds of looters. One is the “bantay salakay” or moonlighting looter. The other is the professional looter.

    • @Rene
      I have a summer home right on the beach where Hurricane Sandy hit hardest. We always evacuated every time whenever necessary. Never did we lose anything. My patio chairs were left in the yard all summer and I used to go to this house every weekend during summer and once a month during winter. I only locked the doors like everybody else. Never did I lose a single item in this property. In the Philippines, I placed lighting fixtures on the tomb of my recently departed father and lock on the surrounding gates. I have replaced the lock at least ten times and stopped putting light bulbs because not only they were stolen, even the electric cables were stripped. the difference is values and probably economic hardship.
      I am speaking from personal experience, not generalities. But if we have to compare in terms of degree of probability, in the Philippines it is more rampant bad behavior, unfortunately.

      • @johnny, …those were the “items” they love to take many years ago. Now, even the bones and false teeth [if still there] are stolen! If the cadaver is recent, it disappears too, maybe sold to hospitals for study, etc. Under normal circumstances when these things happen, it is only ordinary stealing. Should be special crime of Looting with penalty on looters “converted” to cadavers too!

        Today here is eve of All Souls Day. All Catholic cemeteries throughout filled with lighted candles, radios, lighted bulbs, etc. and people eating, laughing, praying, gambling Ma Jong, Poker, Pusoy, etc. Human and vehicle traffic are a close-knit situation! You know all this anyway. Smelling like a lighted candle when you get home!

        Pray for our dear departed today.

      • [email protected]

        Your cemetery story is quite true. But you are so lucky because it seems that the iron grills are still intact. The junk is highly salable and commands a good price.

        • Does it pay to cremate our dead? Keep the Urn then. Just watch out, household helpers might “throw” the contents believing it contains dusts! It happened before. I had one male helper who “cleaned” the antique metal item with artistic painted colors thinking it looks it needed soap brushing, which he did. WAAAAA!