Thousands displaced as Super Typhoon Man-yi hits Philippines, forcing authorities to cancel flights

By Anadolu staff

ANKARA (AA) – At least two people were injured, and over 110,000 others were evacuated as Super Typhoon Man-yi made landfall in the Philippines, bringing heavy rain and strong winds that disrupted flight operations and transport service in various parts of the Southeast Asian country, local media reported on Sunday.

Typhoon Man-yi, also known as Pepito, made landfall late Saturday, injuring two people and affecting over 850,000 people across the country, according to Inquirer.Net.

National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said 111,658 people have been displaced and moved to evacuation centers.

Heavy rain and strong wind also forced authorities to cancel domestic and international flights as the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said so far 75 domestic and 18 international flights of Philippine Airlines and Budget carrier Cebu Pacific have been canceled for Sunday and Monday, according to the Manila Times.

Strong winds uprooted trees, brought down power lines, and ripped off corrugated iron roofing as they swept across the storm-weary Philippines on Sunday, capping an unusual streak of violent weather.

Typhoon Man-yi was still packing maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometers (115 miles) per hour after making landfall on the sparsely populated Catanduanes island late Saturday.

The government also deployed more than 36,000 rescue personnel from the army, air force, navy, and coastguard to assist the affected people and respond quickly to any damage caused by the typhoon.

However, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said the typhoon is expected to weaken later on Sunday.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid