The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that multiple tropical cyclones have struck the Philippines in the span of a month, resulting in millions of people affected, repeated and prolonged displacements, damaged and destroyed homes, and prolonged flooding that has prevented communities from fully recovering. Another super typhoon is forecast to make landfall this weekend.
Within a month, five tropical cyclones have entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR), ranging in strength from severe tropical storm to super typhoon, bringing heavy to intense rainfall or strong to damaging winds.
The latest to make landfall is Usagi, locally known as Ofel, which rapidly intensified into a super typhoon with winds of up to 185 kilometers per hour in the early hours of November 13 before making landfall as a strong typhoon over Baggao, Cagayan on November 14.
According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), the total number of people affected by the five storms is more than 11 million people, or about 3 million families.
The number of communities forced to evacuate multiple times is yet to be determined. More than 617,000 people remain displaced, including 160,000 people in 590 evacuation centers and 460,000 people in temporary shelters.
The Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) humanitarian cluster reports that a significant number of people displaced outside evacuation centers have not been able to return to their homes and are sleeping in the open. These numbers may change as additional tropical cyclones pass over the country.
Authorities in the country are monitoring another strong typhoon on its way to the Philippines, which would be the sixth major storm to pass through the country in four weeks. Tropical Storm Man-yi, known locally as Pepito, is expected to gain strength and develop into another possible super typhoon.
Pepito is forecast to move generally west-northwestward over the next three days before turning generally westward to west-southwestward Monday evening through early Thursday morning. The track forecast has Pepito making landfall near Catanduanes on Saturday night or early Sunday morning.
Very heavy rainfall, strong winds, and storm surges are forecast over the central and northern Philippines from November 16-19.
As an area still recovering from severe flooding caused by Severe Tropical Storm Trami less than a month ago, local authorities, supported by early warning agencies, have called for preemptive evacuation of communities in the path of the storm.
The full extent of the damage or impact of the multiple storms is yet to be determined, as events are still unfolding.
The NDRRMC reports that at least 207,000 homes were damaged in 17 of the country's 18 regions.
While most critical lifelines have been restored, access may be hampered by the approaching storm. The heavy to intense rains have negatively impacted the livelihoods and food security of farmers and fisher folk in the affected areas, particularly in the Bicol region.
The Philippines is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Rising sea levels, higher temperatures, and increased frequency of typhoons and extreme weather events can cause floods, landslides, and erosion that contaminate water resources, damage infrastructure, destroy crops, and lead to loss of life and livelihoods.
In 2024, the World Risk Index ranked the Philippines as the country with the highest disaster risk in the world. The World Risk Index assesses disaster risk for 193 countries. It covers all United Nations member states and more than 99 percent of the world's population.