Philippine Typhoon Left 7,000 Dead In 1897

Typhoon Yolanda (international codename: Haiyan) is not the first tropical cyclone that claimed thousands of lives in Tacloban. A strong typhoon also ravaged the Leyte capital and nearby areas over a hundred years ago, killing about 7,000 people.

An article on Australian newspaper The Barrier Miner dated January 12, 1898 says that the typhoon, which created a tidal wave, wrought havoc in October 12, 1987, leaving "400 Europeans and 6000 natives" dead. Here are the things stated in the century-old document:

Typhoon And Tidal Wave In The Philippines. 7000 Lives Lost. --Mail advices, brought by the steamer Gaelic from Chinese and other ports in the Far East, contain details of the fearful destruction wrought in the Philippine Islands by the typhoon and tidal wave during October. It is estimated that 400 Europeans and 6000 natives lost their lives, many being drowned by the rush of water, while others were killed by the violence of the wind. Several towns have been swept or blown away.

The hurricane first struck the Bay of Santa Paula, and devastated the district lying to the south of it. No communication with the neighborhood was possible for two days. The hurricane reached Leyte on October 12, and striking Tacloban, the capital, with terrific force, reduced it to ruins in less than half an hour. The bodies of 126 Europeans have been recovered from the fallen buildings. Four hundred natives were buried in the ruins. A score of small trading vessels and two Sydney traders were wrecked on the southern coast, and their crews drowned.

At Gamoa the sea swept inland for a mile, destroying property worth seven million dollars, and many natives lost their lives. noypistuff The Government prison at Tacloban was wrecked, and of the 200 rebels therein half succeeded in making their escape. The town of Hermin was swept away by flood, and its 5000 inhabitants are missing. The small station of Weera, near Loog, is also gone, while in Loog itself only three houses are left standing.

Thousands of natives are roaming about the devastated province seeking food and medical attendance. In many cases the corpses were mutilated as though they had fallen in battle, and the expressions of their faces were most agonising.

A book written by Jesuit priest and meteorologist Jose P. Algue also narrated the catastrophe in detail. Below is an excerpt from Father Algue's book, titled "Baguio de Samar y Leyte," which was published the next year.

"Indescribable is the damage caused by the fury of the winds in the southern populations of central and northern Samar and Leyte, which were within the zone of destruction of the typhoon. But the damage of the waves caused by the hurricane was much greater in the eastern and western coasts of Southern Samar, those which form the Bay of San Pedro and San Pablo."