When a typhoon forms near the Caroline or Yap islands in the Pacific, then advances northwest toward the Philippines, it gathers an awesome, almost incomprehensible energy - a destructive power often estimated as the equivalent of ten hydrogen bombs. When it hits landmasses where there are mountain ranges, the wind velocity is greatly reduced and the typhoon's fury is felt primarily along the coasts. But the islands of Batanes, the northernmost province of the Philippines, do not have significant mountain ranges. When the monster strikes, the full fury of the typhoon is unleashed over entire islands: Its rage is spent in every town.
Sometimes, giant tidal waves accompany the typhoon. Crashing over the coastline, they destroy concrete seawalls. And, after the typhoon has passed, heavy monsoon rains wash over the islands for days and weeks. Fungus grows on the walls of houses; a gloomy, eerie pall fills the atmosphere. For people to survive in such conditions, they must be resilient, resourceful, wise, and hardy.
The Ivatans, the inhabitants of Batanes, are precisely that. They build their houses to be sturdy enough to withstand the strongest typhoons and tidal waves. In 1978, the tidal waves that washed through the barrio of San Vicente did not topple any house, nor were lives lost. The solid stone and lime foundations of the houses withstood three successive giant waves.
Survival on the typhoon islands
The Batanes Islands were referred to as "the typhoon islands" by ancient seafarers because of the devastating winds that frequently strike them. The force of the storms is stunning. For example, in October 1956, a violent typhoon blew down the stone belfry of the church on Sabtang Island. And in 1953 and 1954, giant tidal waves washed through the towns on Batan and Sabtang islands. In April 1978, the towns of Mahatao, Ivana, and San Vicente were similarly stricken by tidal waves.
Giant tidal waves are not uncommon is these places. The data of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Administration (PAG-ASA) show that from 1948 to 1988 a total of ninety-one tropical cyclones passed through the province of Batanes. In the same period the neighboring Cagayan Province experienced seventy-five tropical cyclones, which also affected Batanes due to its proximity. Batanes, therefore, is the stormiest place in the Philippines, a country that averages twenty-one tropical cyclones a year and is recognized as having the highest frequency of tropical cyclones in the world. In fact, the Batanes capital, Basco, is perennially the point of reference in describing tropical cyclones that blow into the Philippines - precisely because it lies in the path of many cyclones that brew in the Pacific and move toward mainland Asia.
Typhoons are not the only natural calamities the Ivatan people have to contend with. During the winter season in the Northern Hemisphere, cold Siberian winds blow toward the islands, causing chilly mornings. During ordinary days, the temperature can suddenly change from hot to cold (which perhaps explains why respiratory disease is the most commonly reported ailment among the people.) There is also a threat from earthquakes, which have struck both Batanes and the Ilocos provinces in the past.
Earthquakes in
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