Blackout hits Olongapo, Subic as 'Cosme' nears

OLONGAPO CITY, Philippines - Tropical storm Cosme's strong wind and rain cut off power supply in various parts of the city as early as ten o'clock Saturday morning. A power outage also hit the central business district of the Subic Bay Freeport about 2 p.m. At least five areas in Central and Northern Luzon were placed under Storm Signal 3 as tropical storm "Cosme" (Halong) continued to gain strength Saturday. On Friday, eight employees of shipbuilding company Hanjin Heavy Industries Construction Philippines, Inc. cheated death when the ferry the company hired capsized off the coast of Subic. The eight workers were on board the rented ferry from Boton wharf on the way to the Hanjin shipyard in Cawag village when big waves brought by the "Cosme" battered the ferry. The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said "Cosme" might make landfall on Ilocos Sur Saturday night. "Mag-ingat ang ating kababayan sa parteng norte sa ating bansa (We advise people traveling in the north to be very careful especially tonight, when it makes landfall)," Anthony Roland Golez Jr, spokesman of the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) said on government-run dzRB radio. Pagasa said that as of 10 a.m., "Cosme" was 130 kilometers (km) west of Iba, Zambales, with maximum sustained winds of 105 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 135 kph. "Cosme" was moving northeast at 19 kph and was expected to make landfall over Ilocos Sur province on Saturday evening. On Sunday evening it is expected to cross Northern Luzon and will be in the vicinity of Aparri, Cagayan. By Monday morning it is forecast to be 460 km east-northeast of Basco, Batanes. By Tuesday morning it is expected to be 1,180 km east-northeast of Basco, Batanes or 540 km east-southeast of Okinawa, Japan. Areas under Storm Signal 3 include Zambales, Pangasinan, La Union, Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte. Under Signal 2 are Bataan, Pampanga, Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, Benguet, Ifugao, Mt. Province, Kalinga, and Abra. Under Signal 1 are Lubang Island, Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, Bulacan, Northern Quezon, Aurora, Quirino, Isabela, Cagayan, Apayao, Batanes, and Metro Manila. Pagasa said "Cosme" would continue to enhance the southwest monsoon and bring rains over Southern Luzon and Western Visayas. It warned residents in low-lying areas and near mountain slopes to take all the necessary precautions against possible flash floods and landslides. Residents along the coastal areas of Western Luzon and Western Visayas were also alerted against big waves generated by "Cosme." - John Bayarong, GMANews.TV