Typhoon Xangsane (2000)

Typhoon Xangsane (Reming)
Typhoon (JMA scale)
Category 2 typhoon (SSHWS)
	Typhoon Xangsane at peak intensity on October 31st
Formed	October 24, 2000
Dissipated	November 1, 2000
Highest winds	10-minute sustained: 140 km/h (85 mph) ; 1-minute sustained: 165 km/h (105 mph) ;
Lowest pressure	960 hPa (mbar); 28.35 inHg
Fatalities	181 total
Areas affected	Caroline Islands, Philippines, Taiwan and Japan
	Part of the 2000 Pacific typhoon season

Typhoon Xangsane, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Reming, was a typhoon that hit the Philippines and Taiwan in 2000. Xangsane first hit southern Luzon in the Philippines. It turned to the north over the South China Sea, and after strengthening to a 100 mph typhoon it hit Taiwan. Xangsane dissipated on Nov. 1st, after causing 181 casualties, 83 of which were from the crash of Singapore Airlines Flight 006 the previous day on October 31, 2000.

Meteorological history[]

Map plotting the storm's track and intensity, according to the Saffir–Simpson scale

Map key

Saffir–Simpson scale

Tropical depression (≤38 mph, ≤62 km/h)
Tropical storm (39–73 mph, 63–118 km/h)
Category 1 (74–95 mph, 119–153 km/h)
Category 2 (96–110 mph, 154–177 km/h)
Category 3 (111–129 mph, 178–208 km/h)
Category 4 (130–156 mph, 209–251 km/h)
Category 5 (≥157 mph, ≥252 km/h)
Unknown

Storm type

Tropical cyclone

Subtropical cyclone

Extratropical cyclone / Remnant low / Tropical disturbance / Monsoon depression

On October 24, the formation of a tropical cyclone began in the waters near Palau, and on the 25th, the tropical cyclone number 30W was numbered by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC). The tropical cyclone then reached the surveillance area of the Philippines, so it was given the Philippine name "Reming" by PAGASA. After that, 30W (Reming) was named "Xangsane". This name was proposed by Laos and means "Elephant". Xangsane crossed Luzon, Philippines from the 27th to the 28th. After that, it proceeded to the South China Sea on the 29th and strengthened to 100 mph while changing its course to the north. Xangsane approached Taiwan from 31st October to 1st November and changed to an extratropical cyclone in the East China Sea at 12:00 (UTC) 1st November.^[1]^[2]

Xangsane was the 15th storm that approached Japan in 2000.^[3] 2000 was a rare year when the number of storms approached Japan was relatively high, even though there were no storms that made landfall in Japan.

Impact[]

Xangsane hit the Manila metropolitan area. Heavy winds and heavy rains occurred in Quezon, Bulacan, Zambales and Pangasinan, as well as in the Bicol region of southern Luzon.^[4] In Tayabas, Quezon, rainfall of 312.3 mm was observed in 24 hours.^[4] The storm killed 40 people, lost 100,000 homes, and caused damage of $27.45 million.^[5]

In Taiwan, floods killed 59 people and caused $500 million in damages.^[5] On October 31, when Xangsane was approaching Taiwan, an accident of Singapore Airlines Flight 006 occurred at Zhongzheng International Airport (now Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport). Initially, it was suspected that the accident was due to the effect of Xangsane, but it was later discovered that the accident was due to a pilot error. However, some argue that this pilot error was due to poor visibility from Xangsane.^[5]

References[]

^ Annual Report on Activities of the RSMC Tokyo - Typhoon Center 2000、P.42
^ "台風200020号 (XANGSANE) - 詳細経路情報" (in Japanese). デジタル台風. Retrieved 2015-03-20.
^ "気象庁｜台風経路図2000年". www.data.jma.go.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2020-08-02.
^ ^a ^b O., Jr., Lucrecio (2000). "Typhoon Reming 0014 (XANGSANE) :a Stride Team case study". NDRB. PAGASA: 41. Retrieved 2015-03-20.
^ ^a ^b ^c Annual Tropical Cyclone Reports、P.181