ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR III
Ours is a place of pain and hurt in times of Typhoons. As 20 plus strong winds that never blows lonely but with the whistle of destructions every single year. we can never be accustomed to something perennially destructive.
When Yolanda came, it was one of the most painful time for Eastern Visayas, it was and still is the most destructive Typhoon ever.
Now with TD Kristine, TD Ofel and TD Pepito we are seeing extra strong wallop in the winds of these Tropical Depression and it is feared the Super Typhoon norm is here. Why and what could be the reason for the incremental uptick of the gustiness of the winds?
In a story appearing in ABS CBN, it disclosed that as per, PAGASA weather specialist Benison Estareja said at least two factors affect the formation of stronger storms and the path they take, namely, warmer sea surface temperature in the central Pacific Ocean and high pressure.
“’Yung mainit na sea surface temperature, isa yan sa mga factor kung bakit may nabubuo na mga cloud clusters na eventually po ay nagiging bagyo. Dahil sa high pressure area during ‘ber’ months, mas napu-push pababa yung direksyon ng mga bagyo so either westward or west northwest towards Mindanao, Visayas and Central Luzon,” he said.
The overall warming of the Earth’s atmosphere and oceans contributes to more intense weather patterns, including stronger typhoons. The increased heat leads to more unstable atmospheric conditions, resulting in more powerful storms.
Sadly, Warmer Oceans and Climate Change are doing the dual damage to our Typhoon firing range which is the Eastern and Northern Pacific area in our country . The term Firing Range is Metaphoric of our location as the primary path of the Tropical Depressions. It had always been that way since time immemorial.
What can we do? we should have been adapting. Resilience indeednis a big word, but adaptation must be the key. If we see Typhoons 20 plus times every year, it would be foolish not to be ready. It is adapting to this reality that beseech and ravage us. Adaptation, preparedness and proactive actions not resilience must be the big word.
