Philippines Faces Year’s Strongest Storm “Typhoon Mangkhut”

Super Typhoon Mangkhut slammed into the Philippines in the early hours of Saturday around the same time when Hurricane Florence hit North Carolina in the United States, with its forceful winds and pounding rains. Now when the storm has hit, there still is a risk of rising floodwaters and landslides in the affected areas.

Typhoon Mangkhut is so far regarded as the strongest storm anywhere in the world this year which is carrying the wind at the speed of 325 kilometers per hour before making the landfall in Cagayan province, on the northern tip of Luzon province.

Now when it has already crossed the Philippines, Mangkhut’s winds have slowed down enough for the typhoon started to weaken but it remains as a very powerful storm system with maximum sustained winds of 215 kph (134 mph) which is equivalent to a category 4 hurricanes, which is something very dangerous.

After hitting the Philippines with heavy rain, according to the weather scientists, the typhoon is now heading west into the South China Sea towards Hong Kong and southern China.

Meanwhile, the rescue efforts have started in the Philippines, the military has sent C-130 airplanes and 10 helicopters to Cagayan province, which is worse hit by the typhoon, with relief and rescue materials as informed by the Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana.

The Governor of Cagayan, Manuel Maamba has informed that so far there are no reports of casualties. But the biggest and immediate issue for emergency services is now clearing the debris on the main roads. Power and communication lines are all shut down making it difficult to connect with the remote areas.

Tuguegarao airport in northern Luzon, which is also an important transportation hub, is also damaged by the typhoon and where the water level is rising because of flood amidst torrential rains. The people of Northern Luzon are from farming communities. The typhoon that followed flooding and landslides has also affected the year’s crops.

Typhoon is something not new to the Philippines. Though Mangkhut is considered the strongest storm to make landfall in the Philippines since Super Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, which has left more than 6000 people dead, though Haiyan hit a more populated part of the country.

It’s also the strongest to make landfall on the Philippines’s Luzon province since Super Typhoon Megi in 2010. Northern Luzon was also devastated in 2016 by Super Typhoon Haima, which has then destroyed more than 14,000 houses and damaging around 50,000 homes.