Communities in northern parts of the Filipino island of Luzon are preparing for heavy rains, flooding and landslides as they await the arrival of Super Typhoon Mangkhut, the most powerful storm of 2018—which could affect millions of children.
The slow moving typhoon strengthened to category 5 status on Wednesday, with sustained winds of up to 287km/h, and looks set to pummel coastal communities in the province of Cagayan. Current modelling has the storm making landfall as a category 4 typhoon on Saturday morning.
“We haven’t seen a typhoon this powerful hit the Philippines in some time. We’re particularly concerned about children and families living in coastal and low-lying communities, which are set to face ferocious winds, heavy rainfall and flooding, as well as the risk of storm surge,” Save the Children Philippines CEO Alberto Muyot said.