Flash floods kill at least 450 in Philippines (AP)

MANILA, Philippines – Flash floods devastated a southern Philippines region unaccustomed to serious storms, killing at least 450 people while they slept, rousting hundreds of others to their rooftops and turning two coastal cities into muddy, debris-filled waterways that were strewn with overturned vehicles and toppled trees.

With nearly 300 people missing, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and top military officials were to fly to the worst-hit city of Cagayan de Oro on Sunday to help oversee search-and-rescue efforts and deal with thousands of displaced villagers, as the weather began to clear and floodwaters receded. Among the items urgently needed are coffins and body bags, said Benito Ramos, who heads the government's disaster-response agency.

"It's overwhelming. We didn't expect these many dead," Ramos said.

Army officers reported unidentified bodies piled up in morgues in Cagayan de Oro city, where electricity was restored in some areas, although the city of more than 500,000 people remained without tap water.

Most of the victims were asleep Friday night when raging floodwaters cascaded from the mountains after 12 hours of rain from a late-season tropical storm in the southern Mindanao region. The region is unaccustomed to the typhoons that are common elsewhere in the archipelago.

Ayi Hernandez, a former congressman, said he and his family were resting in their home in Cagayan de Oro late Friday when they heard a loud "swooshing sound" and water quickly rose ankle-deep inside. He decided to evacuate to a neighbor's two-story house.

"It was a good thing, because in less than an hour the water rose to about 11 feet (3.3 meters)," filling his home up to the ceiling, he said.

At least 450 people were killed in the floods, Philippine Red Cross Secretary General Gwen Pang and other officials said. At least 229 died in Cagayan de Oro and 144 in nearby Iligan, which has more than 300,000 residents. The rest died in several other southern and central provinces, Pang said.

Many of the bodies were unclaimed after nearly 24 hours, suggesting that entire families had died, she said.

The Office of Civil Defense said 274 people were missing, but Ramos said the number would likely rise as more field reports come in. So far, 437 people have been rescued.

Cagayan de Oro and Iligan were filled with scenes of destruction and desperation.

A swollen river sent floodwaters gushing through neighborhoods that do not usually experience flooding. A man floated in an inner tube in muddy water littered with plastic buckets, pieces of wood and other debris. Ten people in one home stood on a sloping roof, waiting for rescuers even as water still flooded the lower floors.

Local television footage showed muddy water rushing in the streets, sweeping away all sorts of debris. Thick layers of mud coated streets where the waters had subsided. One car was thrown over a concrete fence and others were crushed and piled in a flooded canal.

Ramos attributed the high casualties in Mindanao "partly to the complacency of people because they are not in the usual path of storms" despite four days of warnings by officials that one was approaching.

Thousands of soldiers backed up by hundreds of local police, reservists, coast guard officers and civilian volunteers were mobilized for rescue efforts, but they were hampered by the flooded-out roads and lack of electricity.

The missing included prominent Filipino radio broadcaster Enie Alsonado, who was swept away while trying to save his neighbors, Iligan Mayor Lawrence Cruz said.

Authorities recovered bodies from the mud after the water subsided. Parts of concrete walls and roofs, toppled vehicles and other debris littered the streets.

Rescuers in boats rushed offshore to save people swept out to sea. In Misamis Oriental province, 60 people were plucked from the ocean off El Salvador city, about six miles (10 kilometers) northwest of Cagayan de Oro, said disaster official Teddy Sabuga-a.

Cruz said the Philippine coast guard and other rescuers were scouring the waters off Iligan for survivors or bodies that may have been swept away to sea.

In just 12 hours, Tropical Storm Washi dumped more than a month of average rains on Mindanao. The storm hit the western province of Palawan on Sunday and was expected to blow out of the country into the South China Sea later in the day.

Forecaster Leny Ruiz said records show that storms that follow the same path as Washi come only once in about every 12 years.

Palawan officials said mobilized emergency crews were on standby as the storm approached.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said in a statement that the Obama administration offered its "deepest condolences" for the devastation in the southern Philippines.

"The U.S. government stands ready to assist Philippine authorities as they respond to this tragedy," the statement said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with all of those affected."

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Associated Press writers Oliver Teves and Hrvoje Hranjski contributed to this report.

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Typhoon kills more than 436 in southern Philippines (Reuters)

CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines (Reuters) – More than 400 people were killed and an unknown number were missing after a typhoon struck the southern Philippines, causing flash floods and landslides and driving tens of thousands from their homes.

In a text message to Reuters, Gwendolyn Pang, secretary-general of the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC), said the death toll of 436 was expected to rise.

"Our death toll was based on the actual number of bodies that were brought to funeral homes in the two cities that were the hardest hit by the typhoon," Pang said, adding it was difficult to estimate how many were still unaccounted for.

Typhoon Washi, with winds gusting up to 90 kmh (56 mph), barreled into the resource-rich island of Mindanao late on Friday, bringing heavy rain that also grounded some domestic flights and left wide areas without power.

Emergency workers, soldiers and police were recovering more bodies - most covered in mud - washed ashore in nearby towns.

Pang said nearly 360 bodies had been found in the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan and about 50 in four other southern provinces. The government's official death toll stood only at 131 people and nearly 270 missing.

Another 21 people drowned on the central island of Negros, the PNRC said.

Hundreds were also unaccounted for, most of them from a coastal village in Iligan. Houses were swept into the sea by floodwaters while people were sleeping inside late on Friday.

The Philippines social welfare department said about 100,000 people were displaced and brought to nearly three dozen

shelters in Iligan and Cagayan de Oro.

"WE RAN FOR OUR LIVES"

Army spokesman Colonel Leopoldo Galon said search and rescue operations would continue along the shorelines in Misamis Oriental and Lanao del Norte provinces.

"I can't explain how these things happened, entire villages were swept to the sea by flash floods," Galon said.

"I have not seen anything like this before. This could be worse than Ondoy," he said, referring to a 2009 storm that inundated the capital, Manila, killing hundreds of people.

Television pictures showed bodies encased in mud, cars piled on top of each other and wrecked homes. Helicopters and boats searched the sea for survivors and victims.

"We ran for our lives when we heard a loud whistle blow and was followed by a big bang," Michael Mabaylan, 38, a carpenter, told Reuters. He said his wife and five children were all safe.

Aid worker Crislyn Felisilda cited concern about children who had became separated from their families or lost their parents. "Many children are looking for their loved ones... (and children were) crying and staring into space."

Rosal Agacac, a 40-year-old mother, was begging authorities to help find her two children after their shanty was swept to the sea. "Please President Noynoy, help me," she cried, holding a candle at a spot where their house stood before the floods, referring to President Benigno Aquino.

Aquino met with cabinet members and disaster officials to assess conditions on the main southern island and ordered a review of disaster plans to avoid a repeat of the tragedy. He is due to inspect typhoon-hit areas after Christmas.

Rescue boats pulled at least 15 people from the sea, said another army spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Randolph Cabangbang.

Iligan City Mayor Lawrence Cruz said many people were caught by surprise when water rose one meter (three feet) high in less

than an hour, forcing people onto roofs. "Most of them were already sleeping when floodwaters entered their homes. This is the worst flooding our city has experienced in years."

The national disaster agency said it could not estimate crop and property damage because emergency workers, including soldiers and police officers, were evacuating families and recovering casualties.

Six domestic flights run by Cebu Pacific were cancelled due to the rain and near-zero visibility in the southern and central

Philippines. Ferry services were also halted, stranding hundreds of people.

An average of 20 typhoons hit the Philippines every year.

(Writing by Manny Mogato)

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8 dead in stormy weather in Philippines (AP)

MANILA, Philippines – A tropical depression is blowing out of the Philippines after leaving 8 people dead and forcing more than 18,000 others to flee from their flooded homes.

The Office of Civil Defense says among the dead were five children who were swept away by strong currents in a rain-swollen river as they rushed home from school Monday in central Iloilo province.

Forecaster Buddy Javier said Thursday that Tropical Storm Banyan weakened into a depression after hitting southern Leyte province on the country's eastern coast on Wednesday. But it continued to dump heavy rains and flooded several central and southern towns.

Javier says the tropical depression may strengthen into a storm as it blows over the South China Sea toward Vietnam.

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Philippines counts cost after Typhoon Nesat departs (Reuters)

MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippines on Wednesday began tallying the damage bill from powerful Typhoon Nesat, which killed at least 21 people and left behind flooded towns, overflowing dams and damage to rice crops across northern Luzon island.

As the typhoon moved over the South China Sea toward northern Vietnam and southern China, Manila said efforts to find dozens of people still missing were being hindered by bad weather.

Financial markets, government offices and some schools reopened after being closed by the typhoon, and train services resumed after power supplies were restored in the capital. However, some flights were again canceled on Wednesday.

The Department of Agriculture said initial estimates put crop damage, mainly of rice, at about $16 million, while the disaster agency put infrastructure damage at around $1.7 million.

Crop damage included 33,890 tonnes of rice from 56,421 hectares affected in five regions, including the key rice growing Cagayan Valley and Central Luzon regions.

The Cagayan Valley and Central Luzon together were expected to account for just under one-third of national rice output in the fourth quarter.

The National Food Authority said it had sufficient stocks to cover the losses, with 2.5 million tonnes of rice, equal to 75 days of demand, in its warehouses.

The central bank said crop damage and supply problems caused by the typhoon could increase prices temporarily.

"In case of inflationary impact, this would at worst be one off," Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo told Reuters.

The government had cut rice imports this year to about 860,000 tonnes from a record 2.45 million tonnes in 2010, and plans to make the country self-sufficient in its national staple in coming years.

Major damage to crops could have forced Manila to buy from international markets at a time when rice prices are rising.

"We are still on the right track," Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said at a senate hearing when asked about rice output given the typhoon damage.

He said the initial damage was about 0.6 percent of estimated fourth-quarter rice output of 6.5 million tonnes.

WIDESPREAD DAMAGE

Across Luzon, the Philippines' main island, flooding, storm surges and strong winds caused great amounts of damage. Some provincial towns were still flooded and without power on Wednesday.

There were still nearly 48,000 people in evacuation centers on Wednesday morning, the disaster agency said, adding authorities were inspecting roads closed by debris and cut by landslides in the northern mountain region.

The sea wall at Manila Bay was badly damaged by storm surges, which swamped Roxas Boulevard and other waterfront areas, keeping the U.S. embassy shut again on Wednesday.

Francis Tolentino, head of the Metro Manila Development Authority, said it would take more than a week to clean up, with the priority on restoring power supply and communication lines.

"There's so much work to be done to rebuild dykes and the sea wall, as well as fix the houses destroyed in coastal areas," Tolentino told Reuters, adding some areas remain flooded.

As Nesat, packing center winds of 130 kph (80 mph) with gustiness of up to 150 kph, departed, weather officials warned another was developing in the Pacific Ocean that could pick up strength and become a typhoon as it approaches north Luzon.

"Our initial track line shows it may hit northern Luzon. But it may be too early to tell because it might still change course," Department of Science and Technology Undersecretary Graciano Yumul said.

(Reporting by Manny Mogato; Editing by John Mair and Sugita Katyal)

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Typhoon arrives in China after hitting Philippines (AP)

HONG KONG – A powerful typhoon arrived in southern China on Thursday after skirting Hong Kong and bringing death and widespread flooding to the Philippines earlier this week.

Typhoon Nesat made landfall on the eastern tip of China's Hainan island at 2:30 p.m., the official Xinhua News Agency said.

Hainan authorities closed schools, suspended ferry services and recalled fishing boats as the storm made its way across the South China Sea from the Philippines, where it killed 35 people and left another 45 missing.

Some 67 flights were canceled at the island's two airports, Xinhua said.

The storm swept past Hong Kong earlier in the day, forcing the stock market to suspend trading and shops and businesses to close but causing little damage. The Asian financial center's normally bustling streets were eerily quiet, with few people venturing outside to brave the rain and fierce winds.

Two people were injured when bamboo scaffolding was blown over and collapsed onto a taxi, while a man was injured by a falling tree, local broadcaster RTHK said. A barge ripped free from its moorings in the rough seas slammed into a seawall on Hong Kong Island, forcing some nearby apartments to be evacuated, news reports said.

Local broadcaster Cable TV showed footage of tour groups from mainland China who were stranded after cross-border ferry services were suspended. At Hong Kong's airport, 245 flights were delayed, 20 were canceled and 22 diverted to other airports.

The storm came within 220 miles (350 kilometers) of Hong Kong in the morning before moving away, the Hong Kong Observatory said. It lowered its gale-force wind warning by late afternoon.

The National Meteorological Center reported that fishing boats were in port and schools along the coast had been shut in advance of the typhoon, which is the 17th and likely the strongest to hit Hainan this year.

Nesat left devastation in the Philippines, triggering some of the worst flooding in downtown Manila in decades.

Floodwaters were receding in most places, but many low-lying communities in the north remained in crisis.

Mayor Santiago Austria of the rice-farming town of Jaen in Nueva Ecija province appealed to the government for help, saying many people in his community of 63,000 needed to be rescued but that officials there had only four rescue boats.

"Many people here are still on top of their houses. We don't have enough boats to reach them and hand them food," Austria said.

In all, nearly 500,000 people were affected by the typhoon in the northern Philippines, of which about 170,000 were forced to flee their homes and were in various evacuation centers. The government estimated damage to farms and infrastructure at 1.15 billion pesos ($26 million).

Meanwhile, a new tropical storm was brewing in the Pacific, Philippine government forecaster Bobby Javier said, adding that it already had sustained winds of 52 mph (85 kph) and gusts up to 62 mph (100 kph) and was expected to strengthen significantly before hitting major parts of the country in the next few days.

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Associated Press writer Jim Gomez in Manila, Philippines, contributed to this report.

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Philippines evacuates 100,000 as typhoon Nesat nears (Reuters)

MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippines ordered the evacuation of more than 100,000 people in flood and landslide-prone parts of the main island of Luzon as Typhoon Nesat gathered speed and strength ahead of its expected landfall early on Tuesday.

Six fishermen were reported missing on Monday, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said, adding about 50,000 people are now in temporary shelters in the central Albay province.

Nesat was expected to hit the rice- and corn-growing provinces of Aurora and Isabela in the north on Tuesday, crossing mountain regions before exiting via the northwestern Ilocos provinces, weather forecaster Robert Sawi told reporters.

Packing winds of 130 kph (80 mph) with gusts of up to 160 kph, Nesat was 260 km (161 miles) east by southeast of Casiguran town in northern Aurora province, moving west by northwest at 19 kph.

Flights to the central region were suspended, and schools in the capital Manila closed in the afternoon in response to heavy rains and strong winds brought by Nesat, which is expected to intensify to a category 3 typhoon with winds of around 200 kmh (125 mph)

The disaster agency said hundreds of motorists and ferry passengers were stranded in ports, while soldiers and rescue workers were put on alert to help move residents to safety from areas at risk of flood and landslide.

Nesat, known locally as Pedring, could cause landslides, flash floods and storm surges in coastal areas, Sawi said.

"We've raised the typhoon alerts due to strong winds and rain that could uproot trees and topple communications and power lines," he said.

Graciano Yumul, head of the weather bureau, said 25 ml per hour of rainfall was expected, less than half the amount dumped in 2009 by Ketsana, which submerged large parts of the capital and killed hundreds.

(Reporting By Manny Mogato; Editing by John Mair and Sanjeev Miglani)

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10 dead after strong typhoon hits Philippines (AP)

MANILA, Philippines – Typhoon Nanmadol began blowing toward Taiwan on Sunday after leaving at least 10 people dead and scuttling a visit by a U.S. Navy carrier group in the Philippines, officials said.

Taiwan issued sea and land warnings and planned to evacuate about 6,000 people in its eastern and southern regions as it braced for the typhoon. Troops and rescue equipment were deployed, Taiwan's Defense Ministry said.

With its enormous cloud band, the typhoon drenched the northern Philippines with rain for days before pummeling the area with fierce wind, setting off landslides and floods and toppling walls that left at least 10 people dead and six others missing. About 20 were injured by landslides and toppled trees, said Benito Ramos, who heads the Office of Civil Defense.

Strong winds knocked down a concrete wall which hit a small eatery in the capital's suburban Quezon City on Sunday, killing a man and injuring two others, police said.

In the northern mountain resort city of Baguio, a garbage dump's concrete wall collapsed and buried three shanties under tons of garbage Saturday, killing two children. Their grandmother remained missing, Ramos said.

Seven others perished in landslides or drowned, including a fisherman whose body was found floating Saturday off eastern Catanduanes province. A decision by many villagers to flee to safety before the typhoon struck and vigilance helped reduce the number of casualties, Ramos said.

In northern Benguet province, bus driver Reynaldo Carlos ordered his passengers to flee Saturday after seeing mud, debris and boulders surging down a mountainside toward the vehicle, which was stuck on a muddy road.

The bus, its engine still running, was swept down a 200-foot (60-meter) ravine after everyone escaped, officials said.

"I was trembling with fear after I realized how close we were to death," Carlos told The Associated Press by telephone.

About 20 landslides blocked roads in Benguet, a gold-mining region about 130 miles (210 kilometers) north of Manila. More than 57,000 villagers fled their homes there and in 10 other northern provinces at the height of the typhoon, officials said.

U.S. officials postponed a Manila visit by the U.S. Navy's John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group originally scheduled for this weekend because of the bad weather.

The U.S. Embassy said all tours of the aircraft carrier, as well as a reception on board, had been canceled.

Domestic airlines also canceled more than a dozen flights to areas affected by the typhoon in the northern and central Philippines.

Nanmadol had sustained wind of 121 miles (195 kilometers) per hour and gusts of 143 mph (230 kph) Friday, becoming the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines so far this year. It weakened after grazing northern Cagayan province Saturday. It blew by the northernmost Batanes islands with 75 mph (120 kph) winds Sunday and then began moving away from the country, Philippine government forecasters said.

Nanmadol was expected to hit Taiwan as early as Monday, Taiwan's central weather bureau said. It urged residents to prepare for strong winds and torrential rain, and warned there could be landslides in mountainous regions and flooding in low-lying areas.

On Sunday, TV footage showed parts of eastern and southern Taiwan drenched with rain. Strong winds blew a van across a road in the eastern Taiwanese county of Taitung.

Ferries connecting Taiwan's mainland to islets and some domestic flights were canceled. Train service in southern and eastern Taiwan was to be suspended, and two major roads in eastern and central Taiwan were to be closed starting late Sunday afternoon.

Two eastern Taiwanese counties said people did not have to go to school or work on Monday.

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Associated Press writers Oliver Teves in Manila and Debby Wu in Taipei contributed to this report.

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90,000 flee storm in Philippines (AFP)

MANILA (AFP) – Nearly 90,000 people have been forced to flee their homes in the Philippines due to floods caused by Tropical Storm Meari, with 15 people listed as missing, the civil defence office said.

In Marikina, a low-lying suburb of Manila, 25,000 people were in evacuation centres after waters reached dangerous levels, the office added on Saturday. Authorities indicated it was too early to say when people would be able to return home.

Seas were still too rough for small craft, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said.

One of 10 fishermen who were listed as missing at sea on Thursday had been rescued but the nine others had still not been found. A further three fishermen had failed to return to port by Saturday.

In addition, a woman was washed away by raging waters while two children could not be accounted for amid floods and landslides outside the capital.

While Meari only brushed the eastern side of the country, it still brought torrential rain for most of the week.

Even though the storm was about 600 kilometres (350 miles) north of Manila and moving further away towards China on Saturday, it continued to add to seasonal monsoon rains, the government weather station said.

Numerous schools closed and at least 26 flights had been cancelled since Friday due to the bad weather, the disaster risk reduction council said.

Meari had strengthened and was packing maximum gusts of 135 kilometres per hour (85 miles per hour) and was forecast to continue moving north at 24 kilometres per hour, the weather station said.

An average of 20 storms and typhoons, some of them deadly, hit the Philippines every year.

Over the past six weeks, more than 50 people have been killed in a series of storms, one of which became a typhoon.

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50,000 flee storm in Philippines (AFP)

MANILA (AFP) – Some 50,000 people were in evacuation centres in the Philippines on Friday after fleeing their homes following days of torrential rains caused by Tropical Storm Meari, officials said.

More than 3,200 people fled their homes overnight in the capital Manila alone as the storm added to seasonal monsoon rains, bringing massive flooding to city streets, the civil defence agency said.

The swift evacuation of Manila residents as the waters rose overnight prevented any deaths, said Benito Ramos, executive director of the official National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

"It is a good thing we pre-positioned rubber boats. Thankfully, people reacted well. When we told them to evacuate, they evacuated," Ramos said.

However 11 people were still missing in or near the less-developed Bicol peninsula southeast of Manila that bore the brunt of Meari as it brushed past the eastern side of this country, the council added.

The missing included 10 fishermen who ventured out to sea from the island of Catanduanes before Meari struck and a woman swept away by flash flooding in another part of Bicol, a council said.

The rains, which have been falling for most of the week, intensified on Thursday, forcing people to flee their homes, fearing floods and landslides.

Most schools in and around Manila cancelled classes on Friday due to the flooding with debris blocking many streets, authorities said.

Science Department Undersecretary Graciano Yumul said that rain would further intensify over the main island of Luzon where Manila is located, even though the storm was moving away from the Philippines towards Taiwan.

The government weather station reported that Meari had strengthened as it moved northwest towards Taiwan, with gusts of 100 kilometres (60 miles) per hour.

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Six dead as storm exits Philippines (AFP)

MANILA (AFP) – Six people were killed and 27 others were missing at sea as Tropical Storm Sarika headed out of Philippine waters Friday with many communities still flooded, rescuers said.

Four people drowned in the major southern island of Mindanao earlier this week while a boy died after falling into a swollen creek in Batangas city near Manila, and a woman drowned on the central island of Tablas, they said.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said 26 Filipino fishermen were missing near the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.

One crew member of a barge went missing as the vessel, which was carrying agricultural products, was driven by strong winds off the town of Sariaya, south of Manila, it added.

Several hundred people remained at evacuation centres across Luzon early Friday while waiting for floodwaters to recede, the disaster council said in its latest update.

Sarika was heading for southeastern China on Friday with peak winds of 65 kilometres (40 miles) an hour, after brushing the west coast of the main Philippine island of Luzon, the state weather service said.

An average of 20 storms and typhoons, some of them deadly, hit the Philippines every year.

Last month, tropical storm Aere left 31 people dead before Typhoon Songda killed another three.

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Tropical Storm Chedeng Upgraded to Typhoon as it Heads Toward Philippines (ContributorNetwork)

While many people in the United States are focused on the devastation caused by a series of tornadoes that leveled Joplin, Mo., and wreaked havoc through parts of Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kansas, tropical storm Chedeng continues to strand passengers in the Philippines. The tropical storm was upgraded to a typhoon by the Philippine Coast Guard today.

A little more than 3,600 people remain stranded at various places throughout the Bicol Region. The Bicol Region, along with several other provinces, including Catanduanes, Albay and Samar, among others, are under a more severe storm warning, signal No. 2, than other areas of the country. Much of the rest of the country, including Masbate, Marinduque, and Southern Quezon, is under the lesser public storm warning No. 1.

The Philippines capital of Manila was put on "blue alert" today. That means 60 percent of their available emergency and rescue workers are to be ready for "immediate response" if they are needed, with more to follow if necessary. A blue alert is the second-highest alert level as identified by the Metro Manila Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (MMDRRC) and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

In other areas that are known to be prone to flooding and landslides, measures are being taken to ensure the safety of all residents. The governor of Albay province ordered military vehicles to move the more than 200,000 residents of Legazpi City and surrounding areas to safe ground, fearing the potentially devastating consequences if people were not evacuated promptly.

By late afternoon today, the Philippines Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) had issued warnings that Chedeng had begun to move significantly faster. It was subsequently spotted a little more than 310 miles off the coast of Northern Samar, moving eastward.

U.S. military weather forecasters have issued their own warnings to the Philippines as well. They are predicting that along with its accelerated pace, Typhoon Chedeng is also very likely to become stronger as it heads towards land. They cited " favorable oceanographic conditions " for their estimates.

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Thousands evacuate as typhoon skirts Philippines (AP)

MANILA, Philippines – Thousands of people along the eastern Philippine coastline were moving to temporary shelters Thursday as a powerful typhoon packing strong winds and plenty of rain roared toward the country's northeast.

Typhoon Songda was not expected to make landfall but will skirt along shores with winds of up to 93 miles (150 kilometers) per hour and rainfall of 1.2 inches (30 millimeters), the government weather bureau said.

"It has a big radius, so it can affect many areas even if it does not make landfall," said forecaster Mario Palafox.

About 20 typhoons hit the Philippines every year, killing hundreds of people and destroying crops despite government efforts to minimize casualties and damage by ordering early evacuations.

In central Albay province, Gov. Joey Salceda sent military trucks to begin moving 250,000 residents from coastal and landslide-prone villages and areas in the path of debris from the Mayon volcano. He also offered 11 pounds (five kilograms) of rice as an incentive for each family that evacuates.

Government offices in the region were closed and flights canceled. More than 7,000 people were stranded in ports after the coast guard barred sea travel in areas with typhoon warnings.

In other provinces leading up to the northwest, officials have collected rubber boats and food supplies and put rescuers on standby.

"Local government officials have enough time to prepare, so we hope we have" no casualties, presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said.

President Benigno Aquino III left on a visit to Thailand on Thursday but instructed officials to send him regular updates.

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