Tropical Storm Merbok, known in the Philippines as Tropical Depression Violeta, was a weak, but destructive tropical storm which worsened the conditions in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, previously affected by

Typhoon Muifa The name Muifa (Cantonese language, Cantonese and Macanese language, Macanese: ) has been used for four tropical cyclones in the western north Pacific Ocean. Submitted by Macau, the name is the Cantonese language, Cantonese name for the Chinese ...

, just 2 days after that storm. This is also the first tropical cyclone recognized by the

Japan Meteorological Agency The , abbreviated JMA, is an agency of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. It is charged with gathering and providing results for the public in Japan that are obtained from data based on daily scientific observation an ...

, but not

Joint Typhoon Warning Center The Joint typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) is a joint United States Navy – United States Air Force command in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The JTWC is responsible for the issuing of tropical cyclone warnings in the North-West Pacific Ocean, South P ...

, since Changmi in 2002. The fortieth tropical cyclone and twenty-ninth named storm of the very active

2004 Pacific typhoon season The 2004 Pacific typhoon season was an extremely active season that featured the second-highest ACE ever recorded in a single season, second only to 1997, which featured 29 named storms, nineteen typhoons, and six super typhoons. It was an event ...

, the origins of Merbok can be traced from a disturbance in the

Philippine Sea The Philippine Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean east of the Philippine archipelago (hence the name), the largest in the world, occupying an estimated surface area of . The Philippine Sea Plate forms the floor of the sea. Its ...

early on November 22, with the

PAGASA Pagasa may refer to: * ''Pagasa'' (genus), an insect genus in the family Nabidae *PAGASA, an acronym for the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration *"May Pagasa", a pen-name of José Rizal *Pagasa, alternate s ...

first issuing advisories as Tropical Depression Violeta, to the east of Baler, Aurora. The JMA followed suit, assigning the name ''Merbok'' as it strengthened to a tropical storm; however, the

held the system as a tropical depression. The storm soon made landfall on the night of the same day, while gradually weakening over the high terrains of Luzon. The weakened system emerged off the northwest coast of the country before the last advisory was issued by the two agencies. The remnants moved to the northwest, before dissipating, southwest of

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. Throughout its passage, Merbok was blamed for 31 individuals killed and causing over ₱12.368 billion ($254 million) worth of damages across

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

. Because of the damages exceeding billions, the Philippine name ''Violeta'' was

retired Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

and replaced with ''Vicky''.

Meteorological history

Preparations and impact

Merbok affected the Philippines after

Typhoon Muifa (2004) Typhoon Muifa, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Unding, was a strong typhoon during the 2004 Pacific typhoon season. The name Muifa is taken from the ume blossom. The first of four consecutive tropical cyclones to strike the Philippines, a tr ...

stalled near

before hitting the area as a Category 1 typhoon. Violeta caused landslides across

Northern Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ra ...

and

Central Luzon Central Luzon ( pam, (Reyun ning) Kalibudtarang Luzon, pag, (Rehiyon na) Pegley na Luzon, tgl, (Rehiyon ng) Gitnang Luzon, ilo, (Rehion/Deppaar ti) Tengnga ti Luzon), designated as Region III, is an administrative region in the Philippines, ...

that destroyed over 330 houses across the region. There were also reports of heavy flooding. The heaviest rainfall recorded was in

Baler A baler or hay baler is a piece of farm machinery used to compress a cut and raked crop (such as hay, cotton, flax straw, salt marsh hay, or silage) into compact bales that are easy to handle, transport, and store. Often, bales are configured ...

, peaking with 185.2 mm as the storm passed. Over 31 people died, and 187 were injured as a result of the storm.

Aftermath and retirement

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merbok (2004) Tropical cyclones in 2004

Meteorological history

Preparations and impact

Aftermath and retirement

See also

References