page_title: Typhoon Nanmadol (2004)
section_title: Philippines
hierarchical_section_title: Typhoon Nanmadol (2004) / Impact and aftermath / Philippines
caption_attribution_description: English: Text from the image entry on NASA Visible Earth&#160;– Four tropical storms in two weeks have saturated Luzon Island, the main island in the Philippines, causing devastating flooding. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this image of the island after the clouds from the most recent storm, Typhoon Nanmadol, cleared on December 4, 2004. Rivers throughout the island are swollen far beyond their normal size, as shown in the comparison image acquired on October 19. The most dramatic flooding is along the Cagayan River in the north and the Pampanga River in the south, but other rivers are also swollen. Further evidence of flooding is in the color of the water. In this false color treatment, water is typically dark blue or black. In the flood image, the water is light blue—a sign that it is tinted with sediment. A light blue plume in Manila Bay is also sediment. As flood waters gush over the land, they carry mud into the rivers and the surrounding ocean. The sediment is more obvious in the true color version of the image, where Manila Bay appears to be filled with mud. Over 1,000 people are dead or missing as a result of flooding and landslides in the past week, according to media reports. The most severely impacted communities are in the Sierra Madre, where landslides buried whole communities.
context_page_description: Typhoon Nanmadol, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Yoyong, was the last of four consecutive tropical cyclones to strike the Philippines in 2004. A quickly moving system, Nanmadol brought heavy rainfall and strong winds over the same regions impacted by the previous storms, exacerbating flood conditions in Luzon and surrounding regions. Together Nanmadol and these systems accounted for around 1,000 deaths in the Philippines. The typhoon later became the first December tropical cyclone to strike Taiwan since record keeping began, bringing along with it heavy rain, which also affected nearby regions of eastern China. As an extratropical storm, Nanmadol brought gusty winds and rain to Japan.
  Nanmadol developed from an isolated area of convection south-southwest of Pohnpei that became classified as a tropical depression on November 28. Within highly conducive conditions for development, the system reached tropical storm intensity the following day, followed by typhoon intensity on November 30.
context_section_description: Damage assessments of Nanmadol's impacts in the Philippines found difficulty in distinguishing the storm's impacts from those of Typhoon Muifa, Tropical Storm Merbok, and Tropical Depression Winnie due to their rapid succession of effects. The NDCC, however, noted 70 fatalities as a result of Nanmadol alone, coupled with 157 injuries. The majority of deaths were associated with electrocutions or drownings. Approximately 160,000 people were displaced as well. Overall, the typhoon destroyed 10,457 households and damaged another 57,435.  Damage was estimated at ₱2.23 billion (US$39.3 million). Precipitation peaked at 228 mm (9.0 in) in Daet, Camarines Norte, observed over a 24-hour period.
  Even prior to the Philippine landfall of Nanmadol, ongoing relief operations were hampered by the storm's overreaching effects. Search and rescue helicopters failed to reach planned destinations, which was also due in part to the country's small helicopter fleet. A navy gunboat refitted as a relief ship headed for Real, Quezon was forced to turn back due to high waves onset by the approaching typhoon which swept potentially hazardous logs into sea.
  The first Philippine provinces to be impacted by the typhoon were Albay and Catanduanes, which suffered power outages after strong winds tore down power lines. One person was killed in Virac, Catanduanes after being electrocuted by a felled power line. In order to prevent more widespread outages, electrical service in some locations was deliberately shut down. Landslides triggered by Nanmadol in Aurora killed 25 people. On the Bicol Peninsula, eight fatalities occurred due to drowning, electrocution, or hypothermia.
  In the aftermath of the typhoon, the Philippine Red Cross made a full emergency appeal for funding to assist in recovery from Nanmadol and preceding storms. The Philippines government declared a state of calamity for fifteen provinces, cities, and municipalities. Medical personnel were deployed to mitigate potential outbreaks of disease and transport injured persons to hospitals. The NDCC distributed 14,065 sacks of rice worth roughly ₱11 million (US$200,000).
caption: Satellite image showing flooding in the Philippines after Nanmadol on December 4
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