Typhoon Fung-wong forces mass evacuations in Philippines
Super Typhoon Fung-wong, the biggest storm to threaten the Philippines this year, started battering the country’s northeastern coast ahead of landfall on Sunday, knocking down power, forcing the evacuation of nearly a million people and prompting the defense chief to warn many others to evacuate to safety from high-risk villages before it’s too late, WAM reports.
With a rain and wind band stretching about 1,600 kilometres, Fung-wong could affect nearly two-thirds of the Southeast Asian archipelago. It approached from the Pacific as the Philippines continued to deal with the aftermath of Typhoon Kalmaegi, which left at least 224 people dead in central island provinces earlier in the week before striking Vietnam, where at least five people were killed.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of the Philippines has declared a state of emergency due to the extensive devastation caused by Kalmaegi and the expected calamity from Fung-wong.
Fung-wong packed sustained winds of up to 185 kph and gusts reaching 230 kph as it moved near the coastal waters of Pandan town in eastern Catanduanes province, where heavy rains and thick fog have hampered visibility. The typhoon is forecast to make landfall along the coasts of Aurora or Isabela province later on Sunday or early Monday, according to state meteorologists.
Tropical cyclones with sustained winds of 185 kph or higher are categorised in the Philippines as a super typhoon, a designation adopted years ago to underscore the urgency tied to more extreme weather disturbances.
As previously reported, as of Saturday, Typhoon Kalmaegi death toll was at 204, with 109 missing in Philippines.
