Remarkable Undas Cyclones

It is believed by some Filipinos that typhoons are sure to come once the Undas (All Saints Day period) approaches. I remember the late weatherman Ernie Baron mentioned in his radio program Knowledge Power that typhoons are stronger in November, and he specifically mentioned Typhoon Rosing (international name: Angela) in 1995 that wreaked havoc over the country in the Undas period that year.

I also have some memories of monitoring tropical cyclones that affected the Philippines, a number of them did occur during the Undas period. So I did some little research if this is actually the case, I went back as far as 1992 to cover a thirty-year period to prove the theorem.

As of writing, Severe Tropical Storm Paeng (international name: Nalgae) has already made multiple landfalls over Luzon and its circulation is affecting Metro Manila, bringing in some gusts and heavy rains. So I am going to include this particular cyclone on this list.

Super Typhoon Rosing (international name: Angela; 1995)

I was only two years old when this typhoon hit Luzon. The only vivid memory I got from Rosing is that one stormy afternoon, my elder brother, my six-month-old baby sister and I were gathered in the bedroom by our yaya. The rains poured hard and there was constant sound of pounding iron roofs. I believe none of us were panicking and we were just waiting for the rains to stop.

Areas under PSWS No. 4 during the passage
of Super Typhoon Rosing in 1995.
From Wikimedia Commons. By LEXTRIKE.
Used under Creative Commons 4.0 International license.

Rosing struck Bicol Region, Southern Tagalog and Metro Manila/National Capital Region in the first days of November 1995. Per available cyclone tracks, the eye passed over the southern cities of the metropolis. It was the first time Public Storm Warning Signal (PSWS) No. 4 (the highest warning signal at the time) was hoisted for Metro Manila by the Philippine weather bureau. After the typhoon's passage, NCR was quickly downgraded to PSWS No. 2.

This is the strongest typhoon to hit NCR to date. There are several YouTube videos you can watch to help visualize what can a super typhoon do to Manila upon direct hit.

Combo of Tropical Storm Reming (international name: Xangsane) and Typhoon Seniang (international name: Bebinca; 2000)

Year 2000 is a very active year for tropical cyclones. I remember it very well because whenever there's only PSWS No. 1 issued over Metro Manila, classes for elementary students are automatically suspended at that time, and due to that, we had a lot of class suspensions that year.

Hoisting of PSWS No. 2 is actually rare for NCR in the early 2000s. Then these two storms gave me an idea what kind of a disaster higher storm signals can bring.

First, we had Tropical Storm Reming that reached Southern Tagalog on 28 October. Metro Manila was under PSWS No. 2. But the worst has not come yet. Days later, Typhoon Seniang followed and directly passed over us 3 November early morning. We were in Signal No. 3.

Not to mention the strong winds and torrential downpour, that was the first time I saw floodwaters reach our house, about two steps high up the stairs. For a first grader me, it was about as high as my waist. The flood quickly subsided that morning, but lo, no electricity for days and no water supply as well. How about that.

Typhoon Paeng (international name: Cimaron; 2006)

This typhoon did not hit Manila but this is noteworthy because it is eponymous to the cyclone we are having as I write this post. It hit Northern Luzon 29 October packing very strong winds, prompting PAGASA (the Philippine weather bureau) to issue its highest PSWS No. 4 to several provinces.

Another thing to note is that Metro Manila was not issued PSWS despite nearby provinces like Bulacan, Rizal and Pampanga being given Signal No. 1, classes still carried on. It was the responsibility of the Department of Education to suspend classes during that time -  so essentially, no storm signal, no class postponements.

Typhoon Santi (international name: Mirinae; 2009)

Halloween for Metro Manila and Southern Luzon was stormy as Typhoon Santi traversed CALABARZON early morning of 31 October 2009. To give a background, the month earlier, Luzon just had Tropical Storm Ondoy and Typhoon Pepeng, so people are kind of panicking because weather forecasts were suggesting a direct Manila hit.

Santi missed the capital region by some 50 kilometers south of it. The recovery was fast, that afternoon, everything seemed to be back to normal in Manila despite bearing Santi's brunt with PSWS No. 3 level of winds.

Super Typhoon Rolly (international name: Goni; 2020)

This for sure is still in the fresh memories of many when it comes to cyclones. Rolly first devastated Bicol Region with winds of up to 225 kilometers per hour (PAGASA measurement), just ten units shy of Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) had in 8 November 2013, warranting the weather bureau to issue its highest cyclone warning of Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) No. 5 to central Bicol early morning of 1 November 2020.

Final forecast track issued by PAGASA
for tropical cyclone Rolly.
From DOST-PAGASA. Public Domain.

This is also the second time Metro Manila received TCWS No. 4, the other time was the aforementioned Super Typhoon Rosing of 1995. Therefore, Manila residents, I included, expected to receive very bad effects from the typhoon.

But some sort of miracle happened, after making Bicol, southern Quezon and Batangas landfalls (which, by the way, do not have long mountain ranges to guard them against cyclones), Rolly was significantly reduced to just a tropical storm (three categories lower than a super typhoon) when it made its closest approach to Metro Manila that evening.

Severe Tropical Storm Paeng (international name: Nalgae; 2022)

Now we have this cyclone Paeng that just nearly passed over Manila 29 October. It is not strong in terms of maximum sustained winds, but its rain circulation is very large, so large it caused deaths, direct and indirect, by the dozens in Visayas and Mindanao.

Paeng maintained its maximum wind strength despite making multiple landfalls over Southern Luzon and is still dumping torrential rains in many parts of the country, particularly in the CALABARZON region. It will continue to be in the Philippine Area of Responsibility until 30 October.

I am still verifying and wait for official issuances from PAGASA and other weather agencies if Paeng did indeed pass over NCR or not.
(EDIT: PAGASA confirmed in its bulletin that Paeng did traverse "Metro Manila-Rizal area," so one can assume the center of the cyclone went over Pasig, Marikina and Quezon City.)

Summary

There are other Undas cyclones based on my research, they are:

- Typhoon Husing (international name: Ira; 1993)

- Tropical Storm Viring (international name: Melor; 2003)

- Typhoon Vinta (international name: Krosa; 2013)

- Typhoon Rosita (international name: Yutu; 2018).

Based on the small research covering that thirty-year period, it can be concluded that there's a moderate chance of cyclones affecting the country for the Undas period of every year. It cannot be absolutely stated that tropical cyclones are sure to ruin the trick-or-treat of kids and the observance of All Saints Day of many Filipinos during the said period.

Nevertheless, cyclones should be taken seriously, as they form pretty much anytime within a year for the Western Pacific area, where the Philippines belongs.