Pacific Ocean storm intensifies into year's first super typhoon

SINGAPORE, April 19 (Reuters) - Strong winds and high waves
lashed the eastern Philippines on Monday as the strongest
typhoon ever recorded in April barrelled past in the Pacific
Ocean, prompting official warnings of flash floods and
landslides in the archipelago.
The national weather bureau issued a severe wind and heavy
rainfall warning on Monday, saying "destructive typhoon-force
winds extend outward up to 110 km from the centre of the storm".
More than 60,000 people have been evacuated from coastal areas.
The core of Surigae, or Bising as the storm is known
locally, is not expected to hit land. But with a diameter of 500
km and winds reaching 195 km per hour, the first super typhoon
of 2021 foreshadows a busy storm season for the region in the
year ahead, experts say.
"Early indications are that the 2021 typhoon season will be
at least average in activity, and possibly above average," U.S.
meteorologist Jeff Masters wrote on Yale Climate Connections.
Atmospheric scientists say data shows that storms, called
typhoons, cyclones or hurricanes in different parts of the
world, are getting stronger because of global warming.
"The fuel for these storms is warm oceans," said Anne-Claire
Fontan, a scientific officer at the World Meteorological
Organization based in Geneva. "The global trend is that they are
getting stronger, and a higher percentage of total storms will
be stronger."
A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, allowing gale force
winds to dump more rain. In particular, water temperature in the
western Pacific Ocean is higher than the global average, making
it fertile ground for mega-storms like Surigae. The region sees
more storms than any other part of the world, more than 70% of
which develop at the peak of the season between July and
October.
The Philippines sees around 20 tropical storms annually.
Last year, the strongest typhoon of the year, Goni, hit the
country with gusts of up to 310 km per hour, killing 25 people
and forcing the evacuation of more than 345,000.
Taiwan, meanwhile, is hoping the storm brings much-needed
rain to alleviate a drought, with people taking to social media
to welcome it. However, it is expected to veer away from Taiwan
out into the Pacific, bringing rain only to the northern part of
the island later this week.