Ferocious typhoon makes landfall in Philippines
TUGUEGARAO, Philippines — Typhoon Mangkhut slammed into the Philippines’ northeastern coast early today, its ferocious winds and blinding rain ripping off tin roof sheets and knocking out power, and plowed through the agricultural region at the start of the onslaught.
The typhoon made landfall before dawn in the coastal town of Baggao in Cagayan province on the northern tip of Luzon Island, a breadbasket of floodprone rice plains and mountain provinces often hit by landslides. More than five million people were at risk from the storm, which the Hawaii-based Joint Typhoon Warning Center downgraded from a super typhoon but still punching powerful winds and gusts equivalent to a Category 4 Atlantic hurricane.
There were no immediate reports of major damages or casualties in the region, where a massive evacuation from highrisk areas was carried out over two days.
Global Affairs Canada reported that 3,446 Canadians have registered in areas expected to be affected by Mangkhut.
With a raincloud band 900 kilometres wide, combined with seasonal monsoon rains, the typhoon dumped intense rain that could set off landslides and flash floods. Storm warnings have been raised in almost all the provinces across the Luzon, including the capital, Manila, restricting sea and air travel.
A few hours after landfall, the eye of the typhoon was nearing the western coast of Luzon facing the South China Sea.
Before it hit land, Mangkhut packed sustained winds of 205 kilometres per hour and gusts of up to 255 km/h.