While more than 12 million Philippines citizens prepared for what will surely be one of the strongest typhoons of the year, the country's president called for prayers in a nationally televised speech."
"As always, no storm can bring down a united Filipino people to its knees," the Wall Street Journal reported President Aquino as saying. "The effects of this storm can be eased through solidarity. Let us exhibit calm, especially as we buy our primary necessities, and as we evacuate to safer areas."
According to AFP, authorities in the Philippines warned residents of the imminent risk typhoon Yolanda (Hainan) presented, as it made its way toward the Visayas region with wind gusts higher than 205 miles per hour. Meteorologists expected Yolanda to hit Thursday morning.
"This is a very dangerous typhoon," state weather forecaster Glaiza Escullar told AFP. "Local officials know where the vulnerable areas are and have given instructions on evacuations. There are not too many mountains on its path to deflect the force of impact, making it more dangerous."
Escullar also said that Yolanda was slated to make landfall in Samar, then move through central and southern Philippines before making its way out to the South China Sea by Saturday night. As of Wednesday night, Yolanda was moving with an enormous front of almost 400 miles. The typhoon will most likely affect the central island of Bohol - an area that is still in recovery from a 2011 storm, in addition to a 7.2 magnitude earthquake that rattled the country last month. The quake killed 222 people, while the largely 5,000 survivors continued struggling, living in makeshift tents while they awaited their new homes.
Other areas that could be in danger include the port cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan on the southern island of Mindanao - tropical storm Sendong hit these two locations in December 2011, with flash floods so strong that they took the lives of 1,000 citizens.
Evacuations have already begun taking place in a number of towns and villages said to be in Yolanda's path. All schools were closed, while ferry service was suspended and fishermen were told to stabilize their vessels. Cebu Pacific Air reported that it had canceled 110 domestic and four international ones that were scheduled to take off between Thursday and Saturday.
"[Residents] are now in evacuation centers like gyms and school buildings," governor of Leyte, one of the cities evacuated, Leopoldo Dominico Petilla, told the WSJ. "We checked the safety of the school buildings-the doors, windows-because we are expecting strong winds of 240-to-260 miles per hour."
On Wednesday, the U.S. Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Center said that Yolanda had sustained maximum winds of almost 175 miles per hour, along with gusts of wind topping out at about 205 miles per hour, making it the world's strongest typhoon this year.
