A powerful typhoon is bearing down on the Philippines and could be the “most damaging” storm to hit the country this year.

Typhoon Sarika, which has already caused several deaths, is gaining strength and expected to make landfall in the early hours of Sunday morning UK time.

With winds of up to 115mph, Sarika is expected hit the country as a category 3 storm, bringing huge amounts of rain, which could cause landslides and flooding, and storm surges of up to two metres above normal levels.

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"We can see from the radar that the storm is very destructive,” government forecaster Benison Estareja told AFP news agency. “It can destroy wooden houses, it can topple trees. It can possibly rip off roofs. This could so far be the most damaging typhoon this year."

The storm, known locally as Karen, is predicted to hit the eastern side of Luzon, the Philippines largest and most populated island, and travel across its centre, also affecting parts of Manila, Mr Estareja added.

It is not expected to pass through the central Philippines islands, where Typhoon Haiyan killed more than 6,000 people in 2013.

Heavy rains have already been battering the capital and other areas and public storm warnings have been issued in provinces across Luzon.

After passing through the Philippines, Sarika is expected to pick up the pace as it travels west across the warm waters of the South China Sea towards Vietnam.

Shape Created with Sketch. Typhoon Haiyan: Most powerful storm to ever hit land batters Philippines with 235mph winds Show all 14 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. Typhoon Haiyan: Most powerful storm to ever hit land batters Philippines with 235mph winds 1/14 typhoon1.jpg A satellite image shows Typhoon Haiyan as it crosses the Philippines AP Photo/NOAA 2/14 v2-typhoon-quality.jpg A satellite image of the typhoon EUMETSAT 3/14 AN31618033Typhoon-Haiyan-hi.jpg Typhoon Haiyan hits the Philippines in this weather satellite image, courtesy of the Japan Meteorological Agency REUTERS 4/14 typhoon2.jpg A resident (right) walks past high waves pounding the sea wall amidst strong winds as Typhoon Haiyan hit the city of Legaspi, Albay province, Manila AFP 5/14 typhoon3.jpg Residents stand along a sea wall as high waves pounded them amidst strong winds as Typhoon Haiyan hit the city of Legaspi, Albay province, south of Manila AFP 6/14 typhoon4.jpg A mother and her children brave heavy rains as they head for an evacuation center amidst strong winds as Typhoon Haiyan pounded Cebu City, in central Philippines AFP 7/14 typhoon-house.jpg A house is engulfed by the storm surge brought about by typhoon Haiyan that hit Legazpi city, Albay province AP Photo/Nelson Salting 8/14 typhoon8.jpg People stand at the pier as Super Typhoon Haiyan smashes into coastal communities on the central island of Bacalod AFP 9/14 typhoon6#.jpg Huge waves brought about by powerful typhoon Haiyan hit the shoreline in Legazpi city, Albay province AP 10/14 typhoon5.jpg Fishermen secure their boats in anticipation of the arrival of Typhoon Haiyan near Manila Bay in Bacoor, Cavite Reuters 11/14 typhoon1.jpg A man walks past a tree uprooted by strong winds brought by super Typhoon Haiyan that hit Cebu city, central Philippines Reuters 12/14 typhoon-trees.jpg A resident runs past an uprooted tree amidst strong winds as Typhoon Haiyan pounded Cebu City, in central Philippines STR/AFP/Getty Images 13/14 typhoon.jpg A farmer inspects his cornfields that was damage by the passing of Super Typhoon Haiyan AFP 14/14 typhoon9.jpg Fisherman tights his boat safely ahead of the typhoon Getty Images 1/14 typhoon1.jpg A satellite image shows Typhoon Haiyan as it crosses the Philippines AP Photo/NOAA 2/14 v2-typhoon-quality.jpg A satellite image of the typhoon EUMETSAT 3/14 AN31618033Typhoon-Haiyan-hi.jpg Typhoon Haiyan hits the Philippines in this weather satellite image, courtesy of the Japan Meteorological Agency REUTERS 4/14 typhoon2.jpg A resident (right) walks past high waves pounding the sea wall amidst strong winds as Typhoon Haiyan hit the city of Legaspi, Albay province, Manila AFP 5/14 typhoon3.jpg Residents stand along a sea wall as high waves pounded them amidst strong winds as Typhoon Haiyan hit the city of Legaspi, Albay province, south of Manila AFP 6/14 typhoon4.jpg A mother and her children brave heavy rains as they head for an evacuation center amidst strong winds as Typhoon Haiyan pounded Cebu City, in central Philippines AFP 7/14 typhoon-house.jpg A house is engulfed by the storm surge brought about by typhoon Haiyan that hit Legazpi city, Albay province AP Photo/Nelson Salting 8/14 typhoon8.jpg People stand at the pier as Super Typhoon Haiyan smashes into coastal communities on the central island of Bacalod AFP 9/14 typhoon6#.jpg Huge waves brought about by powerful typhoon Haiyan hit the shoreline in Legazpi city, Albay province AP 10/14 typhoon5.jpg Fishermen secure their boats in anticipation of the arrival of Typhoon Haiyan near Manila Bay in Bacoor, Cavite Reuters 11/14 typhoon1.jpg A man walks past a tree uprooted by strong winds brought by super Typhoon Haiyan that hit Cebu city, central Philippines Reuters 12/14 typhoon-trees.jpg A resident runs past an uprooted tree amidst strong winds as Typhoon Haiyan pounded Cebu City, in central Philippines STR/AFP/Getty Images 13/14 typhoon.jpg A farmer inspects his cornfields that was damage by the passing of Super Typhoon Haiyan AFP 14/14 typhoon9.jpg Fisherman tights his boat safely ahead of the typhoon Getty Images

Vietnam has already been dealing with flooding in its four central provinces, which have killed at least 11 people and displaced thousands.

Flooding from heavy rainfall brought by a tropical low pressure system since Wednesday has cut food supplies to thousands of people and blocked north-south traffic, the government said in a statement on Saturday.

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Seven people drowned or were electrocuted in Quang Binh province, four others were killed in three nearby provinces, and at least 30,000 homes were submerged, state-run Vietnam Television (VTV) said, citing government reports.

"It is our priority now to save people's lives," Chairman Nguyen Huu Hoai, of the provincial People's Committee in Quang Binh, said on a VTV bulletin.

Dozens of foreign tourists were among passengers stranded on 22 trains in the affected region, prompting provincial authorities to provide food and water, while many flights to the region were cancelled, VTV said.

Tropical storm Sarika could bring more rain to the affected areas, analysts said.</s>MANILA: Typhoon Sarika smashed into the main Philippine island of Luzon early Sunday, ripping off roofs, toppling power lines and forcing more than 12,000 people to flee to safer ground, officials said.

Minor landslides and flooding were also reported a day after the cyclone brushed past a remote island and left one person drowned and three others missing, they said.

“The roofs of some house were blown away and power was cut in some areas,” Mina Marasigan, spokeswoman for the government’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, told AFP.

“Minor landslides were also reported as well as floods. We’re waiting for the typhoon to blow over to conduct a fuller assessment,” Marasigan added.

Sarika was progressively weakening since making landfall on the east coast town of Baler before dawn Sunday (1830 GMT Saturday) packing winds of 130 kilometres an hour (81 mph), weather forecasters said.

It later raked across mainly mountainous and sparsely populated areas in the morning, and was expected to roar out to the South China Sea in the afternoon.

Marasigan’s disaster agency said nearly 12,500 people left their homes in the typhoon’s path, seeking refuge in government-run shelters and relatives’ homes.

Eleven people were rescued after a boat capsized off the eastern island of Samar on Friday, while about 1,000 boats and 6,500 passengers were stranded at ports as the coast guard barred smaller vessels from putting to sea.

The disaster agency said 290 commercial flights, including 63 to international destinations, were cancelled due to bad weather.

Marasigan also said 23 mountain climbers were rescued in the northern Philippines.

The Philippine islands are often the first major landmass to be hit by storms that generate over the Pacific Ocean. The Southeast Asian archipelago endures about 20 major storms each year, many of them deadly.

Haiyan, the strongest typhoon ever recorded to hit land, smashed into the central Philippines on November 8, 2013, leaving 7,350 people dead or missing. – AFP</s>11:30 a.m. Monday, Oct. 17, Philippines time: Haima continues intensifying and is forecast to peak as a Category 5-equivalent super typhoon, 167-mph sustained winds and 201-mph gusts as it nears the Philippines' northernmost islands.

At 8 a.m., Haima was 260 miles north-northwest of Yap, headed west-northwest at 16 mph, packing 115-mph sustained winds and 144-mph gusts at center.

If it remains on current course, Haima is forecast to peak at 8 a.m. Wednesday, still well off shore, but is expected to retain super-typhoon strength as it plows past the northeastern tip of Luzon and through the Babuyan and Batanes island groups Thursday morning.

Haima would be the fifth super typhoon of the northwest Pacific season. As if the Batanes and Babuyan islands haven't had enough problems, given what occurred last month when Meranti came calling.

Noon Sunday, Oct. 16, Philippines time: Haima wasted little time, just 1½ days, to become a Category 1-equivalent typhoon, packing 75-mph sustained winds and 92-mph gusts as it continues tracking west-northwest at 10 mph just northeast of Yap. Haima is due to graze the northeast coast of Luzon in the northern Philippines early Thursday, and forecast to peak at 161-mph sustained winds and 198-mph gusts at center – becoming the fifth super typhoon of the northwest Pacific’s tropical-cyclone season – sometime Wednesday.

11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 15, Philippines time: Haima wasted little time morphing into a tropical storm. It remains on track to become the fifth super typhoon of the season and to graze the northeastern tip of Luzon early Wednesday, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center.

At 8 a.m., Haima – Chinese for sea horse – was 356 miles south of Naval Base “Big Navy” on Guam, tracking northweset at 8 mph with 40-mph sustained winds and 52-mph gusts at center.

If it remains on its current course, Haima should peak at 155-mph sustained winds and 184-mph gusts at mid-morning Tuesday, a day before reaching Luzon’s northeastern tip, still packing a mean punch, 144-mph sustained winds and 167-mph gusts. The Batanaes and Babuyan island groups could also take a pounding.

7:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 15, Philippines time: As if the news couldn’t get any worse for the northern Philippines, a new tropical depression spawned overnight Friday south of Guam According to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center, 25W could power through northern Luzon and the Batanes and Babuyan island groups as the fifth super typhoon of the season by next Thursday or Friday. Some models even show 25W turning toward Okinawa in the very long term.</s>Not long after Typhoon Karen (international name: Sarika) exited the Philippine area of reponsibility (PAR), typhoon “Haima,” which will be locally named “Lawin,” is expected to enter PAR on Monday afternoon, October 17.

At 11:00 a.m. today, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) reported the typhoon was spotted east of Visayas, with maximum sustained winds of up to 150 kph near the center and gusts of up to 185 kph, moving northwest at 22 kph.

In Weather Underground’s five-day forecast, typhoon Haima is expected to intensify into a super typhoon offshore, but will slightly weaken before making landfall in extreme northern Luzon on Thursday morning, October 20.</s>MANILA: Typhoon Sarika lashed the main Philippine island of Luzon yesterday, flattening homes and toppling trees and power pylons as more than 12,000 people fled to safer ground, officials said.

Minor landslides and flooding were also reported a day after the cyclone brushed past the remote eastern island of Catanduanes and left one person drowned and three others missing there.

“We were told roofs were ripped off houses and there were fallen trees but that’s about the extent of damage that we know of,” Ricardo Jalad, head of the government’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, told reporters.

Nelianto Bihasa, the mayor of the town of Baler where Sarika made landfall before dawn, told ABS-CBN network the typhoon destroyed at least 20 houses and left one person injured there.

“Many trees and power pylons were toppled,” Bihasa said, adding the coastal town of 36,000 people some 145 kilometres northeast of Manila was without electricity.

Government crews and utility workers immediately went to work clearing roads blocked by landslides, toppled trees and posts and other debris. Some towns began sending people in shelters back to their homes as the danger passed.

Sarika swept out into the South China Sea in the early afternoon after dumping heavy rain across a broad section of Luzon island.

However, the weather service warned the nation to brace for a second storm, with Typhoon Haima expected to strike the same area as early as Thursday.

The disaster agency said nearly 12,500 people had left their homes shortly before Sarika

Eleven people were rescued after a boat capsized off the eastern island of Samar on Friday, while about 1,000 boats and 6,500 passengers were stranded in ports as the coast guard barred smaller vessels from putting to sea.

Local officials reported two other deaths in Catanduanes and the nearby province of Camarines Sur. But Jalad, the disaster agency chief, said the national authorities could not yet determine whether these had anything to do with the storm. — AFP

The disaster agency said 290 commercial flights, including 63 to international destinations, were cancelled.

Eighty-four climbers were rescued from three Philippine mountains in the typhoon’s path, it added.

The Philippine islands are often the first major landmass to be hit by storms that generate over the Pacific Ocean. The Southeast Asian archipelago endures about 20 major storms each year, many of them deadly.

Haiyan, the strongest typhoon ever recorded to hit land, smashed into the central Philippines on November 8, 2013, leaving 7,350 people dead or missing. — AFP</s>Floods triggered by heavy rains have killed 24 people and left four others missing in central Vietnam, disaster officials said Monday, as Typhoon Sarika approaches after leaving at least two people dead and displacing more than 150,000 in the Philippines.

In the worst-hit province of Quang Binh, 18 people died and authorities are searching for three others who are missing, disaster official Tran Le Dang Hung said.

Six people died and one was reported missing in three other central provinces.

“We are worried. We have instructed district governments to outline plans for evacuating people from high-risk areas to cope with the typhoon,” Hung said by telephone from Quang Binh.

Heavy rains of up to 90 cm (3 feet) on Friday and Saturday submerged 125,000 homes in the region, temporarily disrupted the North-South Highway and damaged infrastructure, crops and fish farms.

Hung said the floods have receded in most areas in Quang Binh.

In the Philippines, the fast-moving typhoon blew out of the northern part of the archipelago on Sunday after leaving at least two people dead and displacing more than 15,000, though the region was spared a major disaster due in part to the storm’s speed.

The typhoon is over in the South China Sea and is moving at a speed of 15-20 kph (9.3-12.5 mph) toward northern Vietnam, according to the nation’s national weather forecast center.</s>MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A powerful typhoon slammed into the northeastern Philippines on Sunday, leaving at least two people dead, knocking out power and isolating villages amid floods and toppled trees.

Typhoon Sarika, locally known as Karen, blew into Aurora province early Sunday and was barreling fast through heavily-populated agricultural provinces, including landslide-prone areas, with sustained winds of 130 kilometers (80 miles) per hour and gusts of 220 kph (136 mph).

It was forecast to blow out of the main northern Luzon island by midday into the South China Sea. A separate storm has been spotted far out in the Pacific and may strengthen as it heads toward the Philippines this week, according to the government’s weather agency.

Nearly 10,000 villagers fled their homes in Sarika’s path and were taken in more than 100 emergency shelters, Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo said.

Mayor Nelianto Bihasa of Baler, a popular surfing town in Aurora, said howling wind ripped tin roofs off many houses and knocked down trees and electric posts, causing power outages and blocking access roads to some villages. Coastal villagers were warned early to move to safer areas and there have been no immediate reports of casualties other than two injured residents.

In eastern Catanduanes province, a man drowned after being swept by strong river currents and a farmer died after his head hit the ground in fierce wind, provincial safety officer Gerry Beo said, adding that three fishermen have not returned home from a fishing expedition and were reported missing.

Another death related to the typhoon was being checked in nearby Camarines Sur province, officials said.

A month’s worth of rain poured Friday as the typhoon approached from the Pacific, swelling rivers and creeks and flooding low-lying farming villages, Beo said, adding that most towns in the island province of about 260,000 people have no electricity and spotty communications.

In Bataan province, 50 mountaineers were forced to descend from Mount Tarak in stormy weather, but 36 others remained stranded in the uplands, according to police and firefighters who were trying to rescue them. In the northern mountain province of Benguet, 16 mountaineers were stranded in Mount Pulag and forest rangers were enroute to rescue them, officials said.

About 200 domestic and international flights have been canceled and thousands of passengers stranded in seaports after inter-island ferries were ordered not to venture out in rough seas.

About 20 typhoons and storms lash the Philippines each year, adding to the many burdens in a country that’s also threatened by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The latest typhoon, Sarika, was named after a singing bird in Cambodia.</s>At least one person was killed and three were missing as the Philippines faces what could be “the most damaging” storm this year in the approaching Typhoon Sarika (Karen), officials said Saturday.

A man was found dead on the seashore while three fishermen were reported missing in the eastern island of Catanduanes as Sarika, packing maximum winds of 180 kilometers (112 miles) per hour, passed nearby, the civil defense office said.

Although the storm did not hit the island directly, its strong winds and heavy rains still knocked out all power and telephone lines for the more than 246,000 residents of Catanduanes, the office added.

While the typhoon is not the most powerful to hit the country this year, it could cause the most damage as it will cross heavily-populated areas just north of Manila, said government weather forecaster Benison Estareja.

“We can see from the radar that the storm is very destructive. It can destroy wooden houses, it can topple trees. It can possibly rip off roofs,” he told AFP.

“This could so far, be the most damaging typhoon this year,” Estareja said.

Sarika is forecast to hit the province of Aurora on the east coast of the main island of Luzon before dawn Sunday, he said.

It is expected to cross central Luzon before heading out to sea by Sunday evening, he added.

“This one will have an impact because most of the people are in (that part of) Luzon. Even Metropolitan Manila will be affected,” he warned.

These areas will experience strong winds and heavy rains, with coastal areas at risk of storm surges of up to two meters (more than six feet), the forecaster said.

Low-lying areas will be at risk of flooding while mountainous areas could suffer landslides.

Although the storm did not hit the eastern region of Bicol, that area experienced heavy rains as it passed nearby on Saturday, said civil defense spokeswoman Rachel Miranda.

More than 400 people were evacuated from their homes and sea and air travel in these areas has been suspended as a safety precaution, officials said.

The Philippine islands are often the first major landmass to be hit by storms that generate over the Pacific Ocean. The Southeast Asian archipelago endures about 20 major storms each year, many of them deadly.

Haiyan, the strongest typhoon ever recorded to hit land, smashed into the central Philippines on November 8, 2013, leaving 7,350 people dead or missing.</s>Weather forecasters said Typhoon Sarika, which was packing winds of up to 150 kph (95 mph) before making landfall, was potentially the most destructive this year. They expected it to move west and cross the central province of Luzon on Sunday.

"Typhoon Sarika has weakened while crossing the rugged terrain of central Luzon," the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said in a report, but the storm was still expected to bring moderate to heavy rainfall.

As many as 2,552 families, or 12,496 individuals, had been pre-emptively evacuated, it added.

Sarika's wind speeds subsided to about 130 kph (81 mph) after the landfall, said the weather bureau, adding that it was watching another storm, Haima, that could enter the Philippines on Monday, after forming south of Guam on Saturday.

Typhoon Sarika forced the cancellation of about 160 domestic and international flights on Sunday and stranded more than 6,500 travelers in seaports, disaster officials said.

Storm warning signals had been raised in the capital, Manila, and more than 20 provinces by Sunday morning.

Damage to farm crops, mostly rice and corn, was estimated at 53.5 million pesos ($1.1 million), the officials said.

Some areas were left without power, and major dams were being closely monitored for possible overflow, while floods and landslides blocked five roads in the northern and southern provinces of the main island of Luzon.

Sarika is moving towards the South China Sea, weather officials said, but the risk of flooding, power outages and wind damage could still increase along its path.</s>KUALA LUMPUR: Typhoon Sarika whose location was 1,248km Northeast of Sandakan, Sabah at 8pm on Friday, will not hit Sabah, according to the Malaysian Meteorological Department.

The department in a statement here today said the typhoon was on a West by Northwest trajectory heading towards Luzon Island, Philippines.

However, there was a spillover effect with strong winds and rough seas in the northern part of the Melaka Strait, off Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan, it said.

It added that the situation was expected to persist until Wednesday (Oct 19).

More information can be obtained at the department’s website, on the smartphone application myCuaca, on Facebook at malaysiamet, Twitter: @malaysiamet or by calling 1300221MET(1638). – Bernama
Typhoon Sarika (Karen) arrives at Luzon, Philippines, with the storm's future direction predicted to be toward Vietnam.