Typhoon Ruby, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Unsang, was the strongest typhoon to strike the Philippines in 18 years. The tenth typhoon of the 1988 Pacific typhoon season, Ruby formed from an area of low pressure situated east of the Philippines on October 20. The storm steadily intensified as it moved west, and then west-northwest. After developing an eye, Ruby attained typhoon intensity on October 23 and began to strengthen at a brisker clip. Ruby reached maximum intensity later that day, before moving ashore along the central portion of Luzon early on October 24. The storm steadily weakened over land and this trend only continued after Ruby entered the South China Sea. On October 27, Ruby made a second landfall as a tropical storm on Hainan Island before dissipating the next day.
In addition to being the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines since 1970, Ruby also brought widespread damage to the country. Ten people died after a tornado wiped away six villages near Cagayan de Oro. Elsewhere in the province, five people were killed, and 26,000 were left homeless. Five people were killed and 40 others were presumed dead when a bus fell under a river on Panay Island. Eleven people died and 15,000 people lost their homes in Marikina, a suburb of Manila.
The passenger ferry Doña Marilyn sank in the Visayan Sea en route from Manila to Tacloban City. At least 77 of the 511 people on board died, though there were initial reports of 261 missing. At least 110,000 people were left homeless. Approximately 200,000 dwellings were damaged, including roughly 39,000 that were destroyed. Furthermore, 208 people sustained injuries. Overall, damage in the island nation totaled $268 million (1988 USD), including $40 million in crop damage and $228 million in infrastructure damage. On Hainan Island, offshore China, two people were killed and damage totaled $35.6 million. Elsewhere, the storm was responsible for $9.89 million in damages and one death in the Fujian Province. Overall, 288 people died as a result of the typhoon.
Meteorological history
Typhoon Ruby, the last of four typhoons to form in the basin during October 1988, originated from an area of disturbed weather that formed on October 20; consequently, both the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) and Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) started tracking the system at 18:00 UTC that day. Following an increase in deep convection, a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA) was issued by the JTWC early on October 21. At noon, the JTWC first classified the disturbance as a tropical depression while the JMA upgraded the disturbance into a tropical storm. At the time of classification, the cyclone was situated about east-southeast of Manila on October 21 and moved southwestwards at first. Early on October 22, the depression was upgraded into a tropical storm, and was given the name Ruby by the JTWC. The same day, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) also monitored the storm and assigned it with the local name Usang.
Initially, the storm continued to track towards the southwest, before taking on a westward course typical of a "straight runner". During the afternoon of October 22, the JMA upgraded Ruby into a severe tropical storm. Both agencies estimated that Ruby attained typhoon status on October 23. Despite developing a pinhole eye, intensity estimates from the JMA suggested that Ruby only strengthened slightly over the next 24 hours. However, data from the JTWC suggested that Ruby rapidly strengthened during this period, ultimately attaining a peak wind speed of 230 km/h (145 mph), and a minimum barometric pressure of 950 mbar (hPa; 28.05 inHg). Meanwhile, the JMA estimated maximum intensity of and the same pressure. Ruby accelerated westward to a speed of about 27 km/h (17 mph) in the general direction of Luzon. While maintaining a small wide eye, it made landfall over central Luzon early on October 24, while according to the JMA still at maximum intensity. This made Ruby the most intense tropical cyclone to strike the main island of Luzon since Typhoon Patsy of the 1970 season. The system entered the South China Sea the morning of October 25.
Based on analysis from the JMA, Ruby was believed to have maintained its intensity over land, although the JTWC noted that Ruby weakened substantially over land. During the evening of October 25, when it was about west-northwest of Manila, Ruby started a weakening trend. Meanwhile, the storm's forward motion slowed down significantly, and Ruby turned towards the west-northwest late on October 26. Around this time, the JMA downgraded Ruby into a severe tropical storm. While moving in the general direction of Hainan Island, the JTWC estimated that Ruby lost typhoon intensity on the morning of October 27. Increased northeasterly wind shear took its toll on the storm, resulting in continued weakening. During the afternoon of October 27, Ruby struck the island of Hainan, with the JMA estimating winds of . Land interaction with the rugged terrain of the island accelerated the weakening trend, and after becoming devoid of deep convection, the JTWC ceased tracking Ruby late on October 28. Eighteen hours later, the JMA followed suit.
Preparations Prior to the arrival of Ruby, storm warnings were issued in the Visayas Islands, the northern coast of Mindanao and south to central portions of Luzon. Manila's international airport canceled more than 25 domestic flights on October 24, though international flights operated normally. Classes were suspended on October 22 in Manila, along with most private businesses and government offices. There, all major banks and the city's two stock markets suspended operations on October 24. Numerous ships at U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay were evacuated in advance of Ruby and only "mission-essential personnel" were on duty. All six U.S. military bases in the Philippines were put on maximum alert as the storm neared. Due to Ruby's threat to Hong Kong, a No 3. hurricane signal was issued, but was dropped on October 27 once the storm receded.
Impact
Philippines Throughout the archipelago, Typhoon Ruby flattened homes, sank ships, and blew buses and trucks off freeways. Much of the entire island of Luzon lost power due to the typhoon. Ten people were feared dead, including one child, on October 23 when a tornado destroyed six villages near Cagayan de Oro. There, five others drowned in floodwaters triggered by flash flooding and 26,000 people were displaced from their homes. After the Agusan River overflowed its banks, 1,000 houses were destroyed, leading to more than 20,000 homeless. The Augsen Bridge was also destroyed by the typhoon. The typhoon killed fifteen people in the province of Zamboanga del Sur, six on Camiguin Island, three in Nueva Ecija, two in Surigao City and one in Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Bulacan and Iloilo. In Cugman, Cagayan de Oro, six fatalities were reported, and 1,000 dwellings were destroyed, which resulted in 20,000 people displaced from their residence. In Mindoro Island, twenty people were killed, and roughly 250 houses as well as a bridge were destroyed. Elsewhere, three miners died in a landslide in Davao. Six people drowned in Zamboanga del Sur. According to military reports, a bus fell under the Sibalom River after a bridge, which the bus was atop of, collapsed. Consequently, five people were killed and 40 others were presumed dead, most of whom were either trapped inside the bus or were swept away by flood waters. Seventeen others were rescued. Five people died in Zamboanga del Sur, including one in Pagadian City. Around 3,000 people were evacuated due to rough seas in Legazpi, Albay. Approximately 150 dwellings were flooded in Cebu City.
In the capital Manila, power was knocked out, resulting in many downed trees, and numerous landslides were reported. The city itself suffered widespread flooding which left about 6,000 homeless, but no casualties were reported. The suburb of Marikina, however, sustained the worst impact of all Manila suburbs from the typhoon, where a river overflowed its banks, and 15,000 people were reported homeless. According to press reports, water levels in one subdivision of the suburb were nearly high, which forced homeowners to either hang on to oil containers, the trunks of banana trees, and other debris to stay afloat, or climb to the rooftops of two-story homes. Throughout the city, 11 casualties were reported. A Continental Airlines DC-10 jetliner, which carried 251 passengers from Hawaii, skidded while landing during heavy rain and nearly overshot the runway at the Manila airport, where 24 hour rainfall total exceeded .
The 2,855,000 kg (2,855 t) passenger ferry Doña Marilyn sank during Ruby in the Visayan Sea, despite altering its course in an attempt to avoid the inner core of the typhoon. Several hours before the ship sank, crew members reported that the engine was failing. The vessel was last spotted about 325 km (200 mi) southeast of Manila, and was en route from Manila to Tacloban City. According to reports obtained from the Philippine Coast Guard, there were 243 confirmed survivors, although reports from the Associated Press suggested that as few as 193 people survived. Based on official government reports, the ferry had 451 passengers plus 60 crew members aboard, although many survivors claim there were over 1,000 crew and passengers, citing the fact that there were 1,200 life vests, and there was not enough of them for everyone on board at the time of the incident. Around a week after the storm, Manila newspapers reported that there were at least 52 people on board who were not officially reported as a passenger or crewman. The ship had taken over the route of a sister vessel, the Doña Paz, which sank the previous December with a death toll of more than 1,700.
A cargo ship picked up eight of the aforementioned survivors from the Doña Marilyn; eleven other survivors were found on Maripipi Island and on a nearby inlet, ten were discovered on Sambawan Island, and four others were found floating in the water. In Almagro, 137 survivors washed onshore on October 25, 120 of whom reached shore by either a life jacket or a life boat. Eighteen other survivors were buried in a common grave in Almagro and nine other bodies, also found in Almagro, were shipped to Tacloban. In Tacloban, six other survivors were buried, but over 60 survivors were also found on the island, and were transported on four buses and taken to receive medical treatment. Twenty-two were found on Samar Island, including two in Calbayog. Overall, the shipwreck was confirmed to have killed 77, even though 261 others were listed missing.
In a separate incident, the vessel Zenaida, with 20 people aboard was reported missing off Quezon province east of Manila. The USS Blue Ridge found four crewmen of the Philippine freighter Jet Nann Five, which sank to the south of where the Doña Marilyn sunk about 12 hours after the former left Cebu City for Mindanao. Fifteen of the 19 crewmen were reported as missing, and the four survivors were treated for second-degree sunburn, dehydration, and mild hypothermia. A Philippine navy landing ship and a hospital vessel both capsized in heavy waves off Zamboanga City, but no casualties were reported. A tugboat owned by the Philippine National Oil Company sank off the Bataan Peninsula, but no casualties occurred. A freighter, the Queen Raquel, broke loose in the storm and smashed into a seawall, which resulted in two security guards being rescued by firemen.