AQA Geography - Typhoon Haiyan case study

The storm originated south-east of Micronesia, in the west of the Pacific Ocean. It developed a central eye and became a typhoon on 5th November 2013.

The storm tracked north-west towards South East Asia.

It developed into a super typhoon just before it made landfall in the Philippines on Friday 8th November 2013, as a category five equivalent typhoon.

It then continued across the South China Sea to Vietnam. The typhoon was travelling at approximately 230 km/hour (with gusts of up to 375 km/hour) when it hit the Philippines.

Lowest pressure - 895 millibars.

Typhoon Haiyan measured 425 km in diameter - roughly the width of southern England.

What caused the typhoon

Deep ocean water above 27°C in temperature.

Warm, moist air that after rising, cooled and condensed to produce a band of especially heavy rain.

Effects of the Typhoon

11.5 million people were affected by Typhoon Haiyan.

Over 10,000 people lost their lives.

600,000 people were displaced.

130,074 houses were destroyed.

Immediate responses

The Philippine government estimated that about 175,000 acres of farmland were affected. Many coconut plantations were also destroyed. Coconuts account for nearly half the Philippines agricultural exports and the country is the world's biggest producer of…