Typhoon Bavi Kills At Least 15 in Philippines as It Threatens Taiwan and Japan

Typhoon Bavi, called Inday in the Philippines, weakened as it moved off the Philippines on Friday but was expected to bring heavy rain to Taiwan and parts of Japan before it makes landfall in China.

“More than a dozen people have been killed in landslides in the Philippines as Typhoon Bavi bears down on the region”

Al Jazeera

The storm killed at least 15 people after heavy rains caused flash floods and landslides in several villages and cities, and affected tens of thousands of people there, with the BBC and The Philippine Star cited in the UPI report.

Al Jazeera

In the Philippines, Al Jazeera said a landslide early on Friday killed 10 people as it hit Malapatan in the southern Sarangani province of the island of Mindanao, and at least five people were killed in another landslide in the southern province of Lanao del Sur.

Al Jazeera also reported that the typhoon entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Wednesday but weakened as it continued on a northwest track across the Philippine Sea, close to Northern Luzon, while PAGASA issued alerts that its tail end could bring heavy rainfall and widespread flooding to several areas including Manila.

As Typhoon Bavi approached, Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration warned it could dump up to one metre (39 inches) of rain in some areas, and the island’s defence ministry placed around 29,000 soldiers on standby for emergency and relief operations.

Caliber.Az, citing the BBC, said Bavi was expected to bring heavy rainfall to northern and eastern Taiwan and to a chain of remote Japanese islands before making landfall in China’s southeastern Fujian province on Saturday.

Balkanweb

In Keelung, AFP quoted Chang Shih-huo, 76, saying, "They're saying it's going to be huge; of course that's scary, right?" as locals stocked up on food, taped windows, and stacked sandbags along shopfronts.

Reuters was cited by Caliber.Az for a warning from a 60-year-old fisherman, Chen Ming-hui, who said, "Don't be fooled by the nice and calm weather now. A storm like this could be the most terrifying," while authorities cancelled dozens of flights and suspended classes across the region.

Bavi had already smashed into the United States’ Pacific territories of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands on Monday as a super typhoon, causing infrastructure damage but leaving no casualties, before it weakened over the Pacific Ocean.

“- Published Landslides triggered by one of the strongest storms in decades have killed at least 15 people in the southern Philippines, as parts of East Asia brace themselves for the looming storm”

BBC

Al Jazeera reported that Bavi was expected to dump rain in northern and eastern Taiwan and parts of Japan on Saturday before making landfall in China, while southern China was still reeling from Typhoon Maysak that killed 39 people after a breached dam inundated the city of Nanning.

In the Philippines, Al Jazeera said PAGASA warned that while Bavi would not make landfall in the country, its tail end could bring heavy rainfall and widespread flooding to several areas including Manila, as hundreds of people were evacuated and offices closed ahead of the storm.

UPI said forecasters in China warned of two potential landfalls as it moves toward the north, noting that Bavi’s size—"at it's widest point, the typhoon is as wide as France"—means both its remnants and outer rain bands were likely to affect a huge swath of people and property.