Typhoon Noul Slams Into North Tip of Philippines

About 2,500 residents fled as powerful Typhoon Noul slammed into the
northeastern tip of the Philippines Sunday, as officials warned of
possible flashfloods, landslides and tsunami-like storm surges.
The storm made landfall at Santa Ana in Cagayan province on the
northern edge of the main island of Luzon, about 400 kilometers (250
miles) north of the capital, Manila, Sunday afternoon, the government
weather station said.
Power was cut in Tuguegarao City, the capital of the province of about
1 million inhabitants.
Around 2,500 residents were evacuated to safer grounds in Cagayan and
Isabela provinces, and no casualties or damage were immediately
reported, said Norma Talosig, the civil defense regional
director.”Hopefully it brings only rain because we need rain,” she
said.
The storm’s movement has slowed slightly, but it had also strengthened
to pack gusts of 220 kph (137 mph), said Esperanza Cayanan, chief of
the government’s weather monitoring division.

Heading toward Japan

The storm, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) in
diameter is forecast to blow out of the country Tuesday morning and
head toward southern Japan.
In Taiwan, which is also in the storm’s predicted path, authorities
warned sailors of strong winds and high waves andevacuated almost
1,000 tourists from an island off the southeast coast, the French news
agency AFP reported Sunday.
Public works personnel were using chain saws to clear roads of fallen
trees in Cagayan’s Gonzaga town, DZMM radio reported.
Forecasters warned of 1.6-meter-high (1.75-yard-high) storm surges in
Santa Ana, whichalso includes Palaui Island, with a population of
about 30,000 people.
About 300 people who had fled to shelters near Mount Bulusan,
southeast of Manila, returned home Sunday after the typhoon moved
northward, sparing the province mudslides involving volcanic debris,
said Joric dela Rosa, a civil defense worker in the region.
More than 5,000 passengers andabout 100 vessels were strandedin ports
on Saturday, mostly along the eastern seaboard.
Airline Cebu Pacific canceled at least six domestic flights to the
northern Philippines.
About 20 storms and typhoons hit the Philippines each year.
The strongest on record to makelandfall, Typhoon Haiyan, devastated
the central Philippines in November 2013, claiming more than 7,300
lives.
Material for this report came from AP, Reuters and AFP.