NN ONLINE:
A fast-moving typhoon swept across the central Philippines on Monday, leaving at least two people dead, displacing tens of thousands, and triggering flash floods that trapped residents on rooftops and submerged vehicles, officials said.
Typhoon Kalmaegi made landfall around midnight in Silago town in Southern Leyte province before moving westward over Bacolod city in central Negros Occidental. The storm brought sustained winds of up to 140 kilometers per hour (87 mph) and gusts of 195 kph (121 mph).
In Southern Leyte, an elderly resident drowned in floodwaters, while another person was killed by a fallen tree in central Bohol province, according to initial reports. The typhoon also caused a provincewide power outage in Southern Leyte.
Gwendolyn Pang, secretary-general of the Philippine Red Cross, said residents were stranded on rooftops by floodwaters in Liloan town, Cebu province. In Mandaue city, Cebu, floodwaters reached head height, submerging cars and causing some to float in nearby communities.
Eastern Samar, one of the first provinces hit by Kalmaegi, saw strong winds damage about 300 mostly rural homes in the island community of Homonhon. Mayor Annaliza Gonzales Kwan reported no deaths or injuries and described the damage as limited to wind effects.
Kalmaegi is the 20th tropical cyclone to hit the Philippines this year. Moving west at 25 kph (16 mph), the typhoon is forecast to shift into the South China Sea by Tuesday night or early Wednesday. Authorities warned of heavy rains, destructive winds, and storm surges up to three meters (nearly 10 feet).
Disaster officials said over 150,000 people had evacuated to safer areas ahead of the storm. Rough seas stranded more than 3,500 passengers and cargo drivers at nearly 100 seaports, while at least 186 domestic flights were canceled.
The storm threatens central islands still recovering from a 6.9-magnitude earthquake in late September that killed at least 79 people. Residents near Mount Kanlaon, one of the country’s most active volcanoes on Negros island, were warned of potential volcanic mudflows. The Philippines, prone to about 20 typhoons annually, along with frequent earthquakes and active volcanoes, remains one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries.
