Historic 'Super Typhoon' Bopha Smashes Into Philippines

[unhappycamper]

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/12/03-5



'Most southerly typhoon ever recorded in the Western Pacific' expected to bring 'life-threatening impacts'


Historic 'Super Typhoon' Bopha Smashes Into Philippines
Published on Monday, December 3, 2012 by Common Dreams
- Common Dreams staff

Historic and potentially catastrophic Super Typhoon Bopha has made a direct hit on the southern Philippines on Tuesday morning, raising fears the impacts of the storm may be far worse than a much weaker 2011 storm that killed over 1200 people.

The powerful storm made landfall at 3:45 PM EST on Monday, 4:45 AM Tuesday local time.

The Category 5 Super Typhoon has sustained winds of over 161 mph - gusting to 195 mph - and is the most southerly typhoon ever recorded in the Western Pacific. AccuWeather reports it "is expected to bring life-threatening impacts."

Weather Underground co-founder Dr. Jeff Masters writes that the "extremely dangerous" storm "is following a similar track to last year's Tropical Storm Washi, which hit [the southern Philippine island of] Mindanao on December 16, 2011 with 60 mph winds and torrential rains. Washi triggered devastating flooding that killed 1268 people. Washi was merely a tropical storm, and Bopha is likely to hit at Category 4 or 5 strength, making it the strongest typhoon ever recorded in Mindanao."







Infrared image




This astronaut photo of Super Typhoon Bopha was taken on Sunday, Dec. 2 from the International Space Station, by Astronaut Ford as the historic storm bore down on the Philippines with winds of 160 mph, equivalent to a category 5 hurricane

[GliderGuider]

1. The era of super-storms has begun.

For all we have done, may God have mercy on our souls.

[dixiegrrrrl]

2. Great shot of the monster, from space.

2 "super" hurricanes in a few weeks? What a ..co-incidence.

[hatrack]

3. Yes, but this is happening to brown people far away who don't speak (much) English . . .

Therefore, we can make two predictions:

1. Thanks to the factors mentioned above, there can be no possible connection made between climate breakdown and the effects of this storm. "Bopha" - what kind of name is that?

And besides, it's not even a hurricane. It's a "typhoon", or whatever those foreigners call it, and there's just no way we can compare storm behaviors in the Gulf of America, or in the American Ocean along the eastern seaboard to storms in other places.

2. Even if it gets the requisite 30 seconds coverage on national news, penetration of national consciousness will be nil.

[GliderGuider]

5. Are we drowning in cynicism this morning?

Mind if I join you?

[orwell]

4. Let's drop James Inhoffe...

...and the rest of his "Carbon Cabal" into a boat offshore to monitor the storm.