Ruby pummels Bicol; emergency power shutdown ordered

LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines– Four provinces in the Bicol region have been without electricity since Saturday night, as authorities implemented an emergency power shutdown to prevent damage to power lines from the strong winds brought about by Supertyphoon Ruby, as it heads from Eastern Samar to Masbate on Sunday.

The provinces of Albay, Catanduanes, Masbate, and Sorsogon have had no power since Saturday noon; while some areas at the slopes of Mayon Volcano have had no power since Saturday morning.

Supertyphoon Ruby made its first landfall at 9:15 p.m of Saturday, in Dolores, Eastern Samar. The state weather bureau, PAGASA, said that the typhoon would likely make its second landfall in Masbate on Sunday afternoon.

Power supply has also been cut in Masbate since Saturday, due to the possibility of swells of water or storm surges, as warned by PAGASA,

Local officials said that as of midnight on Saturday, close to 2,000 families (totaling 8,324 individuals) have been evacuated from low-lying seaside villages in Catanduanes.

In all, 24,269 families have been evacuated by Philippine National Police (PNP) and Philippine Army from coastal areas pinpointed by PAGASA’s Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards (NOAH) as being in the storm surge danger zone.