At least two people have been killed and more than a million evacuated as Super Typhoon Fung-wong tore into the Philippines’ eastern seaboard late Sunday, knocking out power and bringing fierce winds and torrential rain to the Bicol region.
The storm, with sustained winds of 185km/h (115mph) and gusts reaching 230km/h (140mph), made landfall in Aurora province on Luzon, the country’s largest island, at 9:10pm local time, according to the state weather bureau. Authorities said the typhoon’s massive radius now spans nearly the entire country.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has declared a national state of emergency as coastal and low-lying communities brace for flooding and landslides. Airports in Bicol and Metro Manila have been shut, while rescuers report one person drowned in Catanduanes and another was crushed under debris in Catbalogan City.
The storm, known locally as Uwan, is the 21st to hit the country this year, and comes just days after Typhoon Kalmaegi killed more than 200 people across Southeast Asia. Fung-wong is expected to veer northwest before heading toward the Taiwan Strait midweek, gradually weakening as it approaches western Taiwan.
Scientists have long warned that the Philippines, already among the world’s most disaster-prone nations, faces increasingly severe and frequent typhoons as the planet warms.
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