700,000 Evacuated as Typhoon Hits Philippines

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The Philippines government says it evacuated 700,000 people from their homes as Typhoon Melor approaches.

The storm arrived on Samar Island on Monday with 185-kilometer per hour winds.

Forecasters say Melor is expected to bring ocean waves as high as four meters along with heavy rain, flooding and landslides.

Up to 600,000 residents left the Albay province over concerns about landslides. Flights were cancelled and hundreds of fishing boats ordered to stay home.

Typhoon Haiyan hit the Philippines two years ago, killing more than 7,000 people.

So far, no deaths have been reported. But strong winds tore roofs from buildings and knocked down trees.

The weather forecasting service Accuweather reports the typhoon is more compact than others that affect that part of the world. That will reduce the damage the typhoon causes as it moves toward the South China Sea.

The storm should become less intense throughout the week but central Philippines could receive up to 300 millimeters of rain, while Manila will receive about half that amount.

I’m ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Dan Friedell.

This report was based on information from VOANews.com. Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English. He also used stories from The Associated Press and Accuweather. Kathleen Struck was the editor.

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