SOME trips in ports of northern Cebu and Cebu City were canceled due to Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) Number 2, as Typhoon Egay (Doksuri) intensified further as it moved westward over the Philippine Sea Monday, July 24, 2023.
Rex Leoben Ygot, head of the Bogo City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (DRRMO), told SunStar Cebu on Monday, that a gale warning had been issued by Coast Guard (CG) Substation Bogo due to a TCWS warning.
Ygot said the CG had ordered the cancellation of trips, particularly those traveling north to destinations such as Masbate, Sorsogon, Villaba, and Palompon in Leyte.
He reported that as of 8 a.m., nine people, including six rolling trucks, were stranded at the Polambato port in Bogo City.
He assured that the Bogo City DRRMO is closely monitoring Typhoon Egay and that the town’s quick response team (QRT) is prepared to respond to any hazards caused by the typhoon.
On July 24, the Cebu Port Authority announced on its Facebook page that some trips from Pier 3 in Cebu City had also been canceled.
These included trips to Ormoc City and Hilongos, Leyte via Roble Shipping, Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Lazi, Siquijor, and Iligan City via Kho Shipping Lines, and Bato Leyte via Medallion Shipping Lines.
From severe tropical storm, Egay accelerated to typhoon category with maximum sustained winds of 150 kilometers per hour (km/h), gusts of up to 185 km/h, and central pressure of 960 hPa.
As of 10 a.m, the eye of the typhoon was located 525 kilometers east of Baler, Aurora.
By 5 p.m. Monday, Egay was still 500 kilometers east of Baler but had intensified, bringing maximum sustained winds of 155 kilometers per hour (km/h) and gusts of up to 190 km/h.
Alfredo Quiblat Jr., Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) Visayas chief, told SunStar Cebu Monday that Typhoon Egay was slowly moving westward but would accelerate and change direction, moving northwestward towards far northern Luzon in the next 12 hours.
Quiblat added that the typhoon would cross the Luzon Strait and pass very close to the Babuyan Islands in Batanes between Tuesday evening or Wednesday afternoon.
He explained that before making landfall, there was a possibility that it could reach the category of a super typhoon with maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometers per hour. However, after landfall, it would return to the typhoon category due to land interaction.
On Thursday, July 27, Egay would exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility and head south of Taiwan. (with CTL)