MANILA — Verbena on Wednesday morning intensified into a severe tropical storm as it continued to move farther away from land, PAGASA said.
Wind Signal No. 1 remains in effect in the Kalayaan Islands, Palawan.
At 10 a.m. Wednesday, Verbena was located 375 km west of Coron, Palawan.
It is now packing winds of 95 kph and gusts of up to 115 kph, moving westward at 35 kph.
Scattered rains from Verbena’s trough or extension may still be experienced over parts of Southern Luzon and Visayas, the state weather bureau said.
Meanwhile, the shear line may continue to bring up to intense rains over Aurora and parts of Cagayan Valley and Cordillera through Saturday noon.
Flooding and landslides remain possible in these areas.
Verbena (international name: Koto) may leave the Philippine area of responsibility late Wednesday or early Thursday.
TWO MISSING
Two have been reported missing in Negros Oriental. Following Verbena’s onslaught, the Office of Civil Defense said.
“Merong ulat po na nawawalang kababayan doon sa Negros Oriental naman po ito. Merong dalawa — 1 from Bais City and 1 from La Libertad. Ang initial report na aming nakuha ay parang naanod po yata sa creek,” Civil Defense Spokesperson Junie Castillo said in an interview with state-run media PTV.
“So ongoing naman po ‘yung search and rescue and retrieval ng ating teams doon sa mga lugar na ito,” he added.
He added that Verbena affected some 78,000 families, including 48,000 families staying in evacuation centers.
“Karamihan dun sa mga binaha no ay nag-subside naman po pero syempre ‘yung mga banta ng pagguho ng lupa ay hindi pa natin kumbaga inaalis no yung possibility of that especially dun sa mga areas na ‘yung mga matataas na lugar, mga bundok at saka ‘yung mga inulan na lugar,” the official warned.
“Kaya dapat po pinag-iingat talaga natin yung mga ating kababayan at lalo na po na dapat inaabiso ito ng ating mga local na awtoridad sa kanila no kung pwede na bang bumalik o wag munang babalik kung umuulan pa para naman dito sa mga landslide-prone areas,” Castillo said.