A powerful typhoon drew closer to the Philippines on Monday, forcing tens of thousands of villagers to flee to safety, knocking out power in entire provinces and prompting authorities to plan the closure of Manila’s international airport.
Typhoon Kammuri was forecast to slam into the country’s eastern coast Monday night to early Tuesday with maximum sustained winds of 155 kilometers (96 miles) per hour and gusts of up to 190 kph (118 mph), government forecasters said.
In Albay, Sorsogon and Catanduanes provinces, where the typhoon is expected to blow ashore, pounding rain and wind started to rattle tin roofs and block visibility by nightfall.