Seven people were killed while thousands fled to higher ground as powerful Typhoon Goni brought torrential rains to the northern Philippines, triggering landslides and floods, officials said yesterday.
Six people died in Mountain Province and Benguet in the northern highlands after they were buried in rocks and mud. A man was killed in nearby Ilocos Norte province after he was hit by a falling tree, the national disaster council said in a report.
Two others were reported missing in flooded areas while five people were injured. Roughly 1,700 people had been evacuated yesterday, the report said.
Photo: EPA
Typhoon Goni was 165km northeast of the northern province of Cagayan yesterday morning, with winds of up to 195kph, according to the Philippine state weather bureau.
In the northern province of Abra, two straight days of heavy rains caused a major river to overflow, Abra Governor Eustaquio Bersamin said.
“The Abra river has turned into an ocean,” Bersamin told DZMM radio.
Photo: EPA
“The rains were much stronger than we expected,” he said.
Thirteen domestic flights were canceled yesterday, the disaster council said.
The storm is the ninth out of an average of 20 that hit the Philippines each year and was heading to Taiwan, the weather bureau said.
China’s National Meteorological Center has forecast Typhoon Goni is unlikely to make landfall in the country, although the lowest level typhoon alert has been issued.
China’s Fujian Province has evacuated nearly 5,000 people involved in the fishing industry from coastal areas while 10,490 boats have returned to port to avoid impact from the typhoon.
Typhoon Soudelor killed at least 21 people in China after making landfall in Chinese-controlled Fujian Province earlier this month.
In Japan, airlines announced possible flight delays and cancellations as Typhoon Goni and Typhoon Atsani, neared.
Typhoon Atsani was expected to approach the Ogasawara island chain about 1,000km south of Tokyo yesterday, with winds of up to 252kph, according to the Japanese meteorological agency.
Typhoon Goni was forecast to approach the Sakishima island chain in the south today, it said.
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