MANILA: Philippine officials began evacuating thousands of residents in areas prone to floods and landslides Wednesday as Typhoon Songda roared toward the country's northeast. Government weather bureau chief Graciano Yumul said the typhoon is likely to make landfall Friday afternoon over Aurora and Isabela provinces. It has already brought heavy rains to the Philippine archipelago's eastern seaboard. Yumul said the typhoon was packing winds of 130 km per hour and gusts of 100 mph. The storm was about 310 km east of Northern Samar province late Wednesday. The typhoon is also expected to pass near Albay province on its way to the northeast. Gov. Joey Salceda has ordered some 250,000 residents there evacuated from coastal areas, flood- and landslide-prone villages, and areas that would be in the path of debris from the Mayon volcano. He has offered five kg of rice as an incentive for each family that evacuates. In other provinces in the path of the typhoon, officials have collected rubber boats and food supplies and put rescuers on standby. Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda appealed to people living near the typhoon's path to monitor news and to heed officials' calls for evacuation if necessary. “Local government officials have enough time to prepare, so we hope we have a zero casualty,” he added. Several domestic flights were canceled or diverted because of stormy weather. Nearly 4,000 people are stranded in ports after the coast guard barred sea travel in areas with typhoon warnings.
