Super Typhoon Mangkhut slams into the Philippines, strongest storm this year
By James Griffiths, CNN | September 14, 2018
Hong Kong (CNN) Super Typhoon Mangkhut made landfall early Saturday in the northern Philippines, bringing with it gale-force winds and pounding rains as aid agencies warn millions are at risk.
Known locally as Ompong, Mangkhut is lashing the northern parts of Luzon Island as it heads west into the South China Sea and toward Hong Kong and southern China.
Mangkhut made landfall in far northeastern Luzon in Cagayan province about 2:30 a.m. local time Saturday and is heading over far Northern Luzon. It has maximum sustained winds of 270 kilometers per hour (165 mph), with gusts as high as 325 kilometers per hour (200 mph), the equivalent of a
Category 5 hurricane.
An estimated 5.2 million people are within 125 kilometers (77 miles) of the projected path of the Super Typhoon, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.
On Friday, parts of Luzon were
placed under Tropical Cyclone Warning Signal No. 4 by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, meaning those areas could expect winds of up to 185 kilometers per hour (114 mph) that could uproot trees, destroy crops, take out electricity and damage buildings.
The agency warned of storm surges up to 19 feet along the Cagayan and Isabela province coastlines.
Most of the rest of the island is under Signal No. 3, meaning it can expect winds of up to 100 kilometers per hour (62 mph) and significant risk to trees, crops and structures. Parts of the island are also at risk of flooding due to heavy rains.
Mangkhut is on track to be as strong as Super Typhoon Haiyan, which
left more than 6,000 people dead in the Philippines in 2013, though that storm hit a more populated part of the country.
Northern Luzon was also devastated in 2016 by Super Typhoon Haima, with 14,000 houses destroyed and 50,000 homes damaged,
according to CNN Philippines.
https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/09/14/asia/super-typhoon-mangkhut-ompong-wxc-intl/index.html