By Deutsche Welle
30 Sep 2024, 01:06 AM EDT
A powerful typhoon hit the northernmost islands of the Philippines this Mondayprompting officials to evacuate villagers, close schools and inter-island ferries and warn of “potentially very destructive” damage to coastal towns.
Typhoon Krathon was last tracked over the coastal waters of Balintang, off Cagayan and Batanes provinces, with sustained winds of up to 175 kilometers per hour and gusts of up to 215 kph, authorities reported.
There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage, but the Philippine weather agency warned of the risk of storm surge in the coastal towns of Batanes, the nearby Babuyan Islands and Cagayan province, and said strong winds could tear off roofs and topple trees. .
Hundreds of villagers were evacuated from the coast in Cagayan province, where power outages were reported. Classes were also suspended in all northern provinces and sea travel was interrupted.
Krathon was moving slowly west and could become a super typhoon when it turns northeast on Tuesday, toward Taiwan.
Taiwan issues ground alert
For its part, Taiwan’s Central Meteorological Agency (CWA) issued a land alert on Monday in response to the incipient arrival of the typhoon, which has already left heavy rainfall in the eastern half of the island.
The land warning was declared for Taitung and Pingtung counties and the Hengchun Peninsula, located in the eastern and southern region of Taiwan.
According to the CWA, the tropical storm became a typhoon on the morning of September 29, when it was in waters northeast of the Philippines.
At 10:15 local time (04:15 CET) on Monday, Krathon was about 215 kilometers southeast of Cape Eluanbi, at the southern tip of Taiwan.
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