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Bloomberg
Typhoon Vongfong, the Northern Hemisphere’s first named storm, was rapidly intensifying east of the Philippines, where it could clip parts of the island nation through Saturday, according to the US Joint Typhoon Warning Center in Hawaii.
The storm, called Ambo in the Philippines, made landfall over San Policarpio town in Eastern Samar province in Visayas island on Thursday, the Philippine
Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said on its Twitter account. The typhoon has hit the Philippines just as lockdowns in Manila and other parts of the country are set to ease.
Some 400,000 people are expected to flee landslide and flood-prone areas, online news ABS-CBN quoted a local disaster official as saying. Unused isolation facilities intended for Covid-19 patients will host residents who will be evacuated.
Vongfong was forecast to bring flooding rains and landslides, as well as damaging winds to parts of Samar provinces, Masbate, Sorsogon, Catanduanes, Albay, Camarines Sur, and the rest of Eastern Visayas, the agency warned. “It has been intensifying rapidly and that is never good,†said Bob Henson, a meteorologist with IBM’s Weather Underground.