(UPDATED)

Super Typhoon “Uwan” began battering parts of Bicol as authorities confirmed that nearly one million individuals have been preemptively evacuated across 10 regions on Sunday, Nov. 9, to avoid the cyclone’s destructive winds and torrential rains.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said a total of 270,682 families or 916,863 individuals sought safe shelter ahead of Uwan’s impact in Ilocos (Region 1), Cagayan Valley (Region 2), Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Central Luzon (Region 3), Calabarzon (Region 4A), Mimaropa (Region 4B), Bicol (Region 5), Western Visayas (Region 6), Central Visayas (Region 7), and Eastern Visayas (Region 8).

A total of 6,775 families or 10,696 individuals have already been affected in Bicol Region and Northern Mindanao (Regon 10) as of 8 a.m.

Of this, 672 families or 2,778 individuals were temporarily staying in 81 evacuation centers. There were also 925 families or 2,915 persons who opted to stay with their friends’ or relatives’ homes.

Signal Number 5

Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Deputy Administrator, Assistant Secretary Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV said Uwan’s powerful winds and heavy downpour were already felt in Catanduanes and other parts of Bicol, prompting the government to raise the Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) No.