Half a million evacuated as Super Typhoon Man-yi makes landfall in the Philippines

More than half a million people have been evacuated from their homes as Super Typhoon Man-yi made landfall along the eastern coast of Catanduanes, Philippines on Saturday.

Winds are currently up to 160 mph (260 kph), making Man-yi the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane.

More than 500,000 people in the country’s Bicol region have been evacuated, a disaster official told DZRH radio, Reuters reported Saturday. This number is expected to rise.

At least 26,000 people in the country’s Northern Samar province were evacuated on Friday and Saturday, according to the country’s government-run Philippine News Agency (PNA).

A further 18,000 were preemptively evacuated from the Eastern Samar and Samar provinces, PNA reported, with patients and staff members of Eastern Samar’s Arteche District Hospital being evacuated to the area’s municipal hall.

Man-yi underwent rapid intensification on Friday, jumping from a tropical storm early Friday to a super typhoon early Saturday. The increase of 55 mph in 24 hours well exceeds the definition of rapid intensification, which is 35 mph in 24 hours.

Signal 5 warnings have been issued for the Catanduanes area by the Philippines meteorological agency PAGASA. This is the highest level for warnings that can be issued.

Catanduanes Governor Joseph Boboy Cua asked for “continued prayers” for the area in a Facebook post, PNA reported.

“Most importantly, we pray you do not forget about Catanduanes. We appeal for your power restoration teams, free calls and text booths, in-kind donations, help and attention, especially after the typhoon leaves the country,” he said in the Facebook post, according to PNA.

After crossing Catanduanes, Man-yi is expected to make another landfall about 70 miles (110 km) northeast of Manila Sunday afternoon.

The storm is expected to bring several meters of potentially catastrophic storm surge, widespread damaging winds and power outages, severe flooding and landslides across a significant swath of eastern Luzon.