WhereIsAtlas · Natural disaster

Typhoon Nina (Sisang)

The November 1987 typhoon that killed 979 people, 287 of them in one town

Concluded — Typhoon Nina, called Sisang in the Philippines, crossed the islands from 23 to 27 November 1987 and killed 979 people. The town of Matnog took the worst of it, where 287 people died — nearly a third of the national toll in a single community.

Typhoon Nina formed near the Marshall Islands in mid-November 1987, was first classified as a tropical cyclone on 19 November, and crossed the Philippines between 23 and 27 November. The record of the twenty deadliest Philippine typhoons from 1947 to 2009 places it seventh, with 979 deaths and the areas struck given as Bicol, Marinduque and Calabarzon.

The toll was not spread evenly. The town of Matnog in Sorsogon province sustained the worst damage, where 287 people died. Sixty-one people died in Sorsogon city itself, where 98% of all structures were either damaged or destroyed. When a single municipality accounts for nearly a third of a national death toll, the disaster is better understood as a series of local catastrophes than as one national event.

This entry records 979 deaths, the figure given in typhoon2000's table; an alternate official count of 1,036 circulates, and the sources do not reconcile the two. As with the other storms in this series, the difference is stated rather than smoothed.

Timeline

  1. November 19, 1987 — First classified as a tropical cyclone: Nina forms from an area of convection near the Marshall Islands and is classified on this date, according to Wikipedia's account.
  2. November 23, 1987 — Five days across Bicol, Marinduque and Calabarzon: The crossing begins; typhoon2000 records these as the areas struck.
  3. November 27, 1987 — The crossing ends: 979 deaths recorded nationally, 287 of them in the town of Matnog.
  4. Today — 979, or 1,036: An alternate official count of 1,036 is in circulation and the sources do not reconcile it with 979.

Quick facts

Local name
Sisang
Dates
23–27 November 1987
First classified
19 November 1987, near the Marshall Islands
Deaths recorded
979 (an alternate count of 1,036 is in circulation)
Worst hit
Matnog, Sorsogon — 287 deaths
Sorsogon city
61 deaths; 98% of structures damaged or destroyed
Rank
7th in typhoon2000's 20 deadliest Philippine typhoons, 1947–2009

Sources

  1. 20 Deadliest Philippine Typhoons (1947–2009) — typhoon2000.ph (2026-10-30)
  2. Deadliest, most destructive cyclones of the Philippines — Philstar (2026-10-30)
  3. Typhoon Nina (1987) — Wikipedia (2026-10-30)