A powerful typhoon has slammed into central Philippines, killing at least four people and bringing strong winds, heavy rains and cutting off power.
Key points:
- Typhoon cuts power, mobile networks, major road
- One person reported dead
- Save the Children says slums likely to be hit the hardest
Nock-Ten, known locally as Typhoon Nina, saw at least 218,000 flee to evacuation shelters as it made landfall over Catanduanes province, on the Bicol peninsula, which was on the highest storm alert for its arrival.
A farmer died after being pinned by a fallen tree in Quezon province, southeast of Manila, a few hours after the typhoon made landfall.
Police said three other villagers, including a couple who were swept by a flash flood, died in Albay province.
The typhoon reached maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometres per hour and gusts of up to 255 kilometres as it made landfall, weather officials and radio reports stated.
The storm weakened slightly, sustaining winds of up to 140 kilometres per hour as it moved towards the heavily populated provinces of Batangas and Cavite, south of Manila.
The typhoon made a second landfall over Camarines Sur province, then weakened slightly, according to the Government's weather agency.
It also cut off a major road on the island of Luzon, which charity Save the Children said might hamper aid efforts.
"Hopefully in the next few hours the typhoon will pass, although it's expected to be here until Wednesday (local time)," Ms Maluyo said.
Christmas day festivities hamper evacuation efforts
Christmas is the biggest holiday in the Philippines, making it difficult for officials to get people's attention to heed the warnings and evacuate.
Governor Miguel Villafuerte of Camarines Sur province offered roast pig — a popular Christmas delicacy locally called "lechon" — in evacuation centres to entice villagers to move to emergency shelters.
"I know it's Christmas … but this is a legit typhoon," Villafuerte tweeted on Christmas Eve.
"Please evacuate, we'll be having lechon at evacuation centres."
In Catanduanes province, Vice Governor Shirley Abundo said she ordered a forced evacuation of villagers, saying some "are really hard-headed, they don't want to leave their houses because it's Christmas".
Nock-Ten, which had a 500-kilometre rain band, was expected to barge westward across the mountainous southern plank of the Philippines' main island of Luzon and blow close to the capital, Manila, on Monday, before starting to exit toward the South China Sea.
Heavy rainfall, destructive winds and battering waves had threatened heavily populated rural and urban regions, where the Philippine weather agency raised typhoon warnings.
Fierce winds and rain knocked down the island's power and communications, forecasters said.
Ned Olney, the Philippines' country director for Save the Children, said the typhoon was likely to hit slum areas hardest.
"It's really the rising waters in the slum areas that causes great threat to human life," he said.
"Most of the structures where people live in these areas are light wooden structures with straw roofs so this type of a storm we'd expect massive damage at the simple household level."
Danger zone to linger
The rotational wind speed is increasing, but the typhoon's progress across land is slowing down — meaning more time in the danger zone for locals.
Land, sea and air travel has been suspended in many areas, leaving thousands of people stranded.
Officials warned of storm surges in coastal villages, flash floods and landslides, and asked villagers to evacuate to safer grounds.
With many refusing to leave high-risk communities, some officials said they decided to carry out forced evacuations.
It is not clear how long it will take for initial damage assessments, with electricity and phone coverage likely to be knocked out for some time.
Communication lines have been cut in some areas, local radio stations reported.
In the past 65 years, seven typhoons have struck the Philippines on Christmas Day, according to the Government's weather agency.
ABC/wires
First posted December 25, 2016 23:18:19
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