Global Courant
MANILA — A super typhoon swept toward the northern Philippines on Tuesday, the country’s weather bureau said.
Super Typhoon Doksuri had maximum sustained winds of 115 mph as it headed for a group of three lightly populated islands off the northern tip of the main island of Luzon, the bureau said.
The storm, dubbed “Egay” in the Philippines, was expected to make landfall or pass very close to the Babuyan Islands or northeastern province of Cagayan on Wednesday afternoon, the agency said in its latest bulletin at 0000 GMT.
It would then cross into Taiwan and eastern China.
The storm was expected to dump more than 200mm of rain on the islands and the northern part of Cagayan, Apayao and Ilocos Norte provinces on Tuesday.
Three of the five Babuyan Islands are inhabited, with a population of about 20,000 people.
Local disaster official Charles Castillejos said coastal communities on the islands had been ordered to leave their homes, while fishermen were ordered to get their boats out of the water.
“We have sent the police to convince the stubborn people who refuse to evacuate,” Castillejos told AFP.
Storm surges over 10 feet could hit some low-lying areas, the weather bureau warned.
Heavy rains were expected in the mountainous northern provinces in the coming days, with landslides “highly likely,” it added.
The Philippines is hit by an average of 20 major storms each year, killing hundreds of people and leaving vast regions in perpetual poverty.
Scientists have warned that such storms, which also kill livestock and destroy important infrastructure, are becoming more powerful as the world warms due to climate change. AFP
