725,000 people evacuated as typhoon Melor slams into Philippines

About 725,000 people fled their homes and communities braced for heavy rain and coastal floods of up to four metres (13ft) as Typhoon Melor slammed into the eastern Philippines on Monday, officials said. Classes, flights and ferry trips were suspended. The government’s weather bureau said the typhoon was packing winds of 150kph (95mph), with gusts of up to 185kph (115mph), and heavy to intense rain within its 300km (185-mile) diameter. It made landfall Monday morning on tiny Batag Island in the eastern Philippines, and a second landfall was expected in Sorsogon province.

While Melor will not slam onshore as a super typhoon as once feared, it still poses dangers to lives and property.

AccuWeather meteorologist Adam Douty

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said 724,839 residents of three eastern provinces were evacuated Sunday and Monday before the storm’s arrival. The largest numbers of evacuees were in Sorsogon and Albay provinces. Bernardo Alejandro, a regional civil defense official, said many residents of Sorsogon voluntarily went to shelters Sunday night, but the provincial governor then ordered evacuations Monday for residents who had refused to leave their homes despite the risk of floods and landslides. In Albay, about 590,000 residents were evacuated as a precaution, including tens of thousands from around Mount Mayon volcano, where volcanic mudflows are an added threat, the national council said.

World Philippines typhoon