Remembering Typhoon Ruping
As Super Typhoon Pablo approaches, I read somewhere that it will follow a similar path and strength as the 1990's historic howler Ruping. Oh I remember Ruping. Ruping was the typhoon that knocked down Cebu and Veco for a few months. I was a sophomore in high school then. No water, no electricity, and .... no classes. It's like the world stopped.
I had to take a bath in the almost dried up and sometimes mango juice-smelling Guadalupe river for almost a week. My favorite food became Virginia corned beef for a while.
Typhoon Ruping battered Cebu so much that there was no electricity for over a month. I think our school's intramurals was even moved to a later date.
In a way, Ruping brought a lot of changes in our life. Mineral water became the "in" thing. Back then, mineral water was supplied by big brands like Viva and Summit. Generator sales also went up as many industries needed the power. Even households bought generators to power deep wells for water. Some even attributed Ruping as the start of Ceboom.
Fast forward 2012...
Another Super Typhoon is on its way. Unlike before, many people now have the internet and we can actually somehow know more information about incoming weather disturbances. At least now, we can prepare for a typhoon days before it actually hits. Weather forecasting now is somehow more accurate compared decades ago but there are just typhoons that are very unpredictable. Forecasts are never 100% right so it is best to err in the side of caution.
| Costliest Philippine typhoons | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Name | Year | PHP | USD |
| 1 | Parma (Pepeng) | 2009 | 27.3 billion | 608 million |
| 2 | Nesat (Pedring) | 2011 | 15 billion | 333 million |
| 3 | Fengshen (Frank) | 2008 | 13.5 billion | 301 million |
| 4 | Ketsana (Ondoy) | 2009 | 11 billion | 244 million |
| 5 | Megi (Juan) | 2010 | 11 billion | 255 million |
| 6 | Mike (Ruping) | 1990 | 10.8 billion | 241 million |
| 7 | Angela (Rosing) | 1995 | 10.8 billion | 241 million |
| 8 | Flo (Kadiang) | 1993 | 8.75 billion | 195 million |
| 9 | Babs (Loleng) | 1998 | 6.79 billion | 151 million |
| 10 | Xangsane (Milenyo) | 2006 | 6.61 billion | 147 million |
Even with more modern equipment and greater reach of mass communications, the 5 most destructive typhoons in the country happened within the last 4 years. Hopefully, Pablo will not dislodge any of the top 10. It is time for us to prepare and brace for impact. People should take this Typhoon seriously because it surely is bound to do a lot damage.
We all still have around 2 days to prepare and make plans for the typhoon. Keep safe, everyone!
UPDATE: Typhoon Pablo became the costliest typhoon ever but ST Yolanda could be as destructive, please prepare!!
UPDATE: Typhoon Pablo became the costliest typhoon ever but ST Yolanda could be as destructive, please prepare!!
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