Dramatic U.S. humanitarian effort in Philippines aids Asia "pivot"

By Manuel Mogato and Aubrey Belford

MANILA/TACLOBAN, Philippines (Reuters) - The U.S. military's response to the devastation wrought by one of the world's most powerful typhoons has been breathtaking.

About 50 U.S. ships and aircraft have been mobilized in the disaster zone, including 10 C-130 transport planes, 12 V-22 Ospreys and 14 Seahawk helicopters air-dropping supplies from an aircraft carrier.

The accelerating relief efforts underscore a fast-expanding U.S.-Philippine military alliance that could grow even stronger in the wake of the catastrophe as the United States pursues its "pivot" towards Asia.

As U.S. ships deliver food, water and medicine, they are also delivering goodwill that could ease the way for the United States to strengthen its often-controversial military presence in one of Southeast Asia's most strategic countries.

"It is not that the United States used assistance to promote rebalancing, but that rebalancing enabled to the U.S. to respond so decisively," said Asia security expert Carl Thayer.

The Philippines is one of Washington's closest allies in Asia and a crucial partner in President Barack Obama's strategy to rebalance U.S. military forces towards the region to counter the rising influence of China.

The United States sent the nuclear-powered USS George Washington aircraft carrier to lead relief efforts after Typhoon Haiyan killed at least 3,900 people on November 8, leaving many survivors dazed and without food and water for days.

Video Tribute to Typhoon Yolanda Victims

A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops in the western part of the Pacific Ocean between 180° and 100°E. This region is referred to as the northwest Pacific basin.[1] For organisational purposes, the northern Pacific Ocean is divided into three regions: the eastern (North America to 140°W), central (140°W to 180°), and western (180° to 100°E). The Regional Specialized Meteorological Center (RSMC) for tropical cyclone forecasts is in Japan, with other tropical cyclone warning centers for the northwest Pacific in Honolulu (the Joint Typhoon Warning Center), the Philippines and Hong Kong. While the RSMC names each system, the main name list itself is coordinated amongst 18 countries that have territories threatened by typhoons each year. The Philippines use their own naming list for systems which approach the country.

Within the northwestern Pacific there are no official typhoon seasons as tropical cyclones form throughout the year. Like any tropical cyclone, there are six main requirements for typhoon formation and development: sufficiently warm sea surface temperatures, atmospheric instability, high humidity in the lower to middle levels of the troposphere, enough Coriolis force to develop a low pressure center, a pre-existing low level focus or disturbance, and low vertical wind shear. The majority of storms form between June and November whilst tropical cyclone formation is at a minimum between December and May. On average, the northwestern Pacific features the most numerous and intense tropical cyclones globally. Like other basins, they are steered by the subtropical ridge towards the west or northwest, with some systems recurving near and east of Japan. The Philippines receive a brunt of the landfalls, with China and Japan being impacted slightly less. Some of the deadliest typhoons in history have struck China. Southern China has the longest record of typhoon impacts for the region, with a thousand year sample via documents within their archives. Taiwan has received the wettest known typhoon on record for the northwest Pacific tropical cyclone basin.

Source: wikipedia.org

PNoy appeals for sobriety in reporting fatality figures from Typhoon Yolanda

President Benigno Aquino III on Sunday night appealed against reporting unconfirmed casualty figures from Super Typhoon Yoland, particularly those in Leyte.

Radio dzBB reported that Aquino, who visited Yolanda-hit areas including Tacloban City, met Sunday night with concerned officials at the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council when he made the appeal.

Tacloban City after typhoon Yolanda (Image source: cnn.com)

News reports have cited fatality figures as high as 10,000.

Meanwhile, official numbers from the NDRRMC released Sunday night set the number of confirmed fatalities at 229. The injured now number 45, with 28 still missing. 

Typhoon likely killed 'hundreds' in Philippines: govt

A super typhoon likely killed hundreds of people in and around one Philippine town, a government minister who toured the area said Saturday.

AFP News - This NOAA image shows Super Typhoon Haiyan taken by the Japan Meteorological Agency's MTSAT at 0630Z on November 7, 2013

"I think hundreds," Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla said on ABS-CBN television when asked how many people had died in the coastal town of c and surrounding villages that he visited on devastated Leyte island.

Palo and the neighbouring city of Tacloban were struck by devastating storm surges early Friday as Super Typhoon Haiyan began scything through major central islands, disaster officials have said.

The government earlier said more than a hundred people were believed to have been killed in Tacloban.