(Eagle News) — Typhoon Haishen, with local name “Kristine” exited the country 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, and is now approaching Japan, but did not dump much rain to replenish dams needing water.
Officials in Japan warned that the typhoon could bring with it a record rainfall and winds strong enough to snap power poles and flip vehicles, It is forecast to move north-northwestward and will pass close to Amami Islands and Tokara Islands in the Ryukyu Archipelago (Japan) between noon and evening.
Afterwards, the typhoon will head towards the sea off the west coast of Kyushu (Japan) and the Korean Peninsula, said the country’s weather bureau, PAGASA.
The storm was forecast to head north and travel off the western coast of Kyushu — one of Japan’s main islands — from the evening through early Monday before reaching South Korea, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
This typhoon is forecast to maintain its current intensity within the next 24 hours before gradually weakening while moving closer towards mainland Japan.
But the typhoon did not dump much rain in the Philippines, as some dams reach below its normal operating water level.
In fact, water level in various dams in the country either further decreased or stayed about the same level. Only two dams in the country had experienced an increase in water level, but only about a few centimeters. Ambuklao dam had an additional 22 centimeters on its water level (743.33 meters to 743.55 meters), while San Roque dam had an increase of 33 centimeters (237.27 meters to 237.67 meters) as of Sunday, 6 a.m, Sept. 6.
The other dams had a decrease in water level: Angat dam had a decrease of five centimeters (179.50 meters to 179.45 meters); La Mesa dam had a centimeter of decrease (79.10 meters to 79.09 meters); Binga dam had a decrease of 1 meters and 24 centimeters (571.91 meters to 570.67 meters); Pantabangan had a three centimeter decrease in water level (182.17 meters to 182.14 meters); Magat dam had a 38 centimeter decrease (173.73 meters to 173.35 meters); and Caliraya dam had a decrease of 1 meter and 10 centimeters in water level overnight. This was as of 6 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 6.
The typhoon was located based on all available data at 1,080 km Northeast of Extreme Northern Luzon, or already outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility as of Saturday night, 10 p.m.