The province of Batanes in the Philippines is bracing for a typhoon with expected wind speeds of up to 200kph, authorities said on Monday.
Typhoon Mawar has already seen nearly 5,000 villagers evacuated from coastal areas of the northernmost province and communities are undergoing near lockdown conditions, with schools and businesses closed. The nearby Cagayan province is also on alert and flights have been halted in the area.
Mawar is an example of a rare phenomenon known as a “super typhoon”. These are category five storms, the strongest in the Pacific region, and can involve wind speeds of up to 250kph.
The Philippines Office of Civil Defence is tracking the course of the typhoon, which caused devastation in the US Pacific territory of Guam last week, turning over cars, causing blackouts and toppling trees, although few casualties were reported.
