Typhoon kills 1, affects thousands in Philippines

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - At least one person was killed while 387,000 others were affected as Typhoon Saola made landfall in the Philippines, authorities said.

Philippines National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said in a statement electricity and water supplies were also affected in some areas of the Southeast Asian nation due to Saola, locally known as Typhoon Goring.

The archipelago nation is also affected by Typhoon Hanna and Tropical Storm Kirogi.

Goring and Hanna are the seventh and eighth tropical cyclones, respectively, to hit the Philippines this year.

Meanwhile, China has issued a red alert -- the most serious level of its four-tier warning system -- as Saola is expected to bring heavy rainfall to coastal regions of the country.

Many regions have postponed the first day of school and suspended production activities and public transport, Beijing-based daily Global Times reported on Friday.

This is the ninth typhoon to hit China this year.

In Hong Kong, weather authorities have warned that the Saola is expected to skirt the city on its south on Friday.