Rammasun, the first major typhoon of the season to affect Philippines, made landfall near Legazpi City on the country's east coast on Tuesday evening.
Locally known as Glenda, the typhoon is presently positioned at 41.2⁰N Latitude and 120.3⁰E Longitude. The storm is moving west/north westwards at a speed of 25 to 30 kmph, sustaining winds of 170 kmph and gusting to about 200 kmph.
After making landfall, the typhoon weakened and is likely to enter South China Sea and intensify further from Category 2 to 3 in a span of 2 days and threaten the coast of Vietnam and South East China.
Aftermath of landfall
The typhoon was the equivalent of a Category 2 hurricane at the time of landfall and led to evacuation of thousands of people across the country. The typhoon also killed at least 10 people as it churned across the archipelago uprooting trees and power lines leading to electrocutions and blackouts.
Many areas have already experienced the worst of the storm and the capital Manila remains at risk of storm surges. The eye of the storm was just about 25 km away from Manila and the city has been receiving heavy rain since Tuesday. Manila observes flooding even with light rain and if showers are brought by a typhoon, the city will definitely have to bear the brunt of severe flooding and even landslides. Even the central Philippines province of Leyte which was devastated by Typhoon Haiyan last year has not been spared.
Richard Gordon, chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross, told local media that minimal damage came upon the capital. Rescue staffs are still trying to help people trapped by fallen debris in Batangas City.
picture courtesy- CIMSS
