I am thankful for science, which is able to warn us in advance of things like super typhoon Haiyan, saving many, many lives.http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/11/08/21362576-most-powerful-storm-ever-to-make-landfall-batters-philippines-4-deaths-confirmed?lite
We don't know yet how many people were killed by this storm, but it would have been much worse w/o prior warning.
By Alexander Smith, NBC News contributor
Nov. 8, 2013
The most powerful storm ever to make landfall battered the Philippines with winds approaching 200 mph early Friday, killing at least four people and raising fears of widespread damage.
More than one million people fled in search of safety ahead of category-five super typhoon Haiyan, which caused mudslides, flash flooding and a storm surge with waves of up to 30 feet. One expert said that the storm's winds had the potential to "obliterate poorly constructed homes."
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“It is the most powerful storm ever to make landfall,” Weather Channel lead meteorologist Michael Palmer told NBC News. “It is as strong a typhoon as you can get, basically.”
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Haiyan made landfall with winds near 195 mph. Typhoons and cyclones of that magnitude can blow apart storm-proof shelters due to the huge pressure they create, which can suck walls out and blow roofs off buildings.
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The Weather Channel's Palmer said gusts of 220 mph had been recorded. “That is the equivalent of EF4 tornado winds -- even EF5," he added. "You would not be able to stand up, it would knock you off your feet and blow you away. And it’s going to obliterate poorly constructed homes and outbuildings. Sturdier buildings will withstand it but with damage.”
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http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/comment.html?entrynum=2574
By: Dr. Jeff Masters, 3:50 PM GMT on November 08, 2013
After spending 48 hours at Category 5 strength, the strongest landfalling tropical cyclone in world history, Super Typhoon Haiyan, has finally weakened to a Category 4 storm. With top sustained winds of 155 mph, Haiyan is still an incredibly powerful super typhoon, but has now finished its rampage through the Central Philippine Islands, and is headed across the South China Sea towards Vietnam. Satellite loops show that Haiyan no longer has a well-defined eye, but the typhoon still has a huge area of intense thunderstorms which are bringing heavy rains to the Central Philippines. I've never witnessed a Category 5 storm that made landfall and stayed at Category 5 strength after spending so many hours over land, and there are very few storms that have stayed at Category 5 strength for so long.
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