Typhoon Durian, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Reming, was a deadly

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Dep ...

that wreaked havoc 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 ...

and later crossed the

Malay Peninsula The Malay Peninsula ( Malay: ''Semenanjung Tanah Melayu'') is a peninsula in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The ar ...

in late November 2006, causing massive loss of life when mudflows from the

Mayon Volcano Mayon ( bcl, Bulkan Mayon; tl, Bulkang Mayon, ), also known as Mount Mayon and Mayon Volcano ( es, Monte Mayón, Volcán Mayón), is an active stratovolcano in the province of Albay in Bicol, Philippines. A popular tourist spot, it is renow ...

buried many villages. Durian first made landfall in the

, packing strong winds and heavy rains that caused mudflows near Mayon Volcano. After causing massive damage in the Philippines, it exited into the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Ph ...

and weakened slightly, before managing to reorganise and restrengthen into a typhoon shortly before its second landfall, this time in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...

near

Ho Chi Minh City , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

, causing further damage of more than US$450 million. In all, Durian killed almost 2,000 people,Analysis: Indonesia: Earthquake - May 2006, Disaster data: A balanced perspective - Mar 2007, Analysis: Southeast Asia: Typhoon Durian - Dec 2006, Disaster data: A balanced perspective - Mar 2007
/ref>Situation Reports: Southeast Asia: Typhoon Durian - Dec 2006, Viet Nam: Typhoons Revised Appeal No. MDRVN001 Operation Update No. 3, Situation Reports: Southeast Asia: Typhoon Xangsane - Sep 2006, Viet Nam: Typhoons Revised Appeal No. MDRVN001 Operation
/ref> and left hundreds more missing. Damages in the Philippines from the typhoon amounted to 5.086 billion PHP (US$130 million).

Meteorological history

Typhoon Durian formed as a tropical depression on November 24, 2006 near

Chuuk State Chuuk State (; also known as Truk) is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). The other states are Kosrae State, Pohnpei State, and Yap State. It consists of several island groups: * Namoneas * Faichuuk * Hall Is ...

. Situated south of a

ridge A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for an extended distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from the narrow top on either side. The line ...

, the system tracked west-northwest through a region of low

wind shear Wind shear (or windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical or horizont ...

and good upper-level

divergence In vector calculus, divergence is a vector operator that operates on a vector field, producing a scalar field giving the quantity of the vector field's source at each point. More technically, the divergence represents the volume density of ...

. Late on November 26, the depression intensified into a tropical storm and was named ''Durian'' 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 ...

(JMA) Steady strengthening took place over the following two days as the system approached the

. After attaining typhoon status on November 29, Durian underwent a period of

rapid intensification In meteorology, rapid intensification is a situation where a tropical cyclone intensifies dramatically in a short period of time. The United States National Hurricane Center defines rapid intensification as an increase in the maximum sustained wi ...

, culminating with it attaining peak 10 minute

maximum sustained wind The maximum sustained wind associated with a tropical cyclone is a common indicator of the intensity of the storm. Within a mature tropical cyclone, it is found within the eyewall at a distance defined as the radius of maximum wind, or RMW. U ...

s of and a central

barometric pressure Atmospheric pressure, also known as barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1013.25 millibars, 7 ...

of 915

mbar The bar is a metric unit of pressure, but not part of the International System of Units (SI). It is defined as exactly equal to 100,000 Pa (100 kPa), or slightly less than the current average atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea l ...

( hPa; 27.02

inHg Inch of mercury (inHg and ″Hg) is a non- SI unit of measurement for pressure. It is used for barometric pressure in weather reports, refrigeration and aviation in the United States. It is the pressure exerted by a column of mercury in hei ...

). Durian brushed the southern coast of the

Catanduanes Catanduanes (; ), officially the Province of Catanduanes, is an island province located in the Bicol Region of Luzon in the Philippines. It is the 12th-largest island in the Philippines, and lies to the east of Camarines Sur, across Maqueda ...

at this intensity on November 30, where a record gust of was observed. Slight weakening took place before the storm made

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

in the

Bicol Region Bicol, known formally as the Bicol Region or colloquially as Bicolandia ( bcl, Rehiyon kan Bikol; Rinconada Bikol: ''Rehiyon ka Bikol''; Waray Sorsogon, Masbateño: ''Rehiyon san Bikol''; tl, Rehiyon ng Bikol), is an administrative region of ...

. Land interaction precipitated further degradation of storm, though it retained typhoon status upon emerging over the

on December 1, having passed just south of

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region, seat of government and one of three List of metrop ...

. Some re-intensification occurred, with Durian reaching a secondary peak on December 3. Subsequently, increasingly hostile conditions caused the system to weaken to a severe tropical storm as it turned southwest. The storm had initial intensifies before struck southern

early on December 5 as a minimal typhoon before diminishing to a tropical depression. The system turned westward once again and crossed the

. The JMA ceased tracking the storm on December 6 when it crossed west of 100° E and into the North Indian Ocean basin, although the

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, So ...

(JTWC) continued tracking it through the Bay of Bengal. Failing to reorganize, Durian degenerated into a remnant low on December 6, before ultimately dissipating three days later off the coast of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

, India, on December 9.

Preparations

Philippines

The

Bicol region Bicol, known formally as the Bicol Region or colloquially as Bicolandia ( bcl, Rehiyon kan Bikol; Rinconada Bikol: ''Rehiyon ka Bikol''; Waray Sorsogon, Masbateño: ''Rehiyon san Bikol''; tl, Rehiyon ng Bikol), is an administrative region of ...

, where Durian first struck, is located at the southeastern portion of the Philippine island of

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 ...

, and is affected by an average of 8.4 tropical cyclones per year. Before Durian made its damaging landfall in the Philippines, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (

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 José Prot ...

) issued various

tropical cyclone warnings and watches Tropical cyclone warnings and watches are alerts issued by national weather forecasting bodies to coastal areas threatened by the imminent approach of a tropical cyclone of tropical storm or hurricane intensity. They are notices to the local popul ...

, including Public Storm Warning Signal #4 for Catanduanes,

Albay Albay, ">Press Releases: Southeast Asia: Typhoon Durian - Dec 2006, Vietnam: Emergency funds sought following Durian
/ref>

Retirement

The 39th session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific/World Meteorological Organization's Typhoon Committee met in Manila, Philippines from December 4–9, soon after the onslaught of the floods from Durian. The committee's regional director stated in their report, "I wish to extend WMO’s sincere condolences and sympathy to your Government and to the Philippine people who were adversely affected by the past typhoons." During the session, the committee List of retired Pacific typhoon names, retired the name Durian, replacing it with Tropical Storm Mangkhut, ''Mangkhut'' in 2008; which was later retired after its Typhoon Mangkhut, usage in 2018. PAGASA also retired the local name "Reming" in 2006 and replaced it with "Ruby", which was also later retired following its Typhoon Hagupit (2014), usage in 2014.

Notes

References

External links

JMA General Information
of Typhoon Durian (0621) from Digital Typhoon
JMA Best Track Data
of Typhoon Durian (0621)
JTWC Best Track Data
of Super Typhoon 24W (Durian)
24W.DURIAN
from the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory * {{DEFAULTSORT:Durian (2006) 2006 Pacific typhoon season 2006 disasters in the Philippines, R Typhoons in the Philippines, R Typhoons in Vietnam 2006 in Vietnam, Typhoon Durian Typhoons Retired Philippine typhoon names November 2006 events in Asia December 2006 events in Asia Tropical cyclones in 2006, Durian