Typhoon Betty displaces over 40 residents in Batanes

More than 40 individuals in Batanes were evacuated from their residences amid the threat of Typhoon Betty.

According to Jonathan Andal’s “24 Oras” report on Tuesday, a total of 43 evacuees were reported in the province. Of the figures, 19 were from Ivana Town, 17 were from Basco, and seven were from Manatao.

However, there were still some residents who refused to evacuate, including Francisco Estrella, who lives in the oldest Ivatan house in Batanes. The heritage structure has been standing for half a century, Estrella said.

“Umiiyak yung bagyo di niya kayang gibain. 1877 pa hanggang ngayon di pa nasira,” said Estrella.

(The typhoon cannot damage my house. It has been standing since 1877.)

“’Yung bubong ko ngayon, luma na, 34 years na. Dapat mapalitan yan eh... walang panggastos eh. Wala naman akong trabaho,” he added.

(My roof is 34 years old. I should change it but I don’t have the finances because I don’t have a job.)

Batanes remains under Storm Signal number 2, according to PAGASA. As of 4 p.m., the center of the eye of the typhoon was estimated 315 kilometers east of Basco, Batanes.

It is moving northward slowly while packing maximum sustained winds of 150 kilometers per hour (km/h) near the center, gustiness of up to 185 km/h, and central pressure of 955 hPa. —Sundy Locus/ VAL, GMA Integrated News