A powerful typhoon made landfall in the northern Philippines early Wednesday, bringing the potentially deadly threat of tidal surges, flash floods and landslides to parts of the country's main island, authorities said. Typhoon Doksuri, known as Egay in the Philippines, made landfall at 3:10 a.m. local time (3:10 p.m. ET) in the vicinity of remote Fuga Island, said Pagasa, the Philippine weather bureau. Though it has weakened from super typhoon strength, Doksuri arrived with winds of about 220 kilometers per hour (140 mph), according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center – equivalent to a category 4 Atlantic hurricane. Pagasa warned that violent and life-threatening conditions are expected in some areas of Luzon, the Philippines' largest and most populous island, as torrential rains rains swept the country. The typhoon has already unleashed up to 16 inches (0.4 meters) of rain, with the potential to reach 20 inches (0.5 meters) as its 680-kilometer (420-mile) rainband brings the risk of flash floods and landslides in mountainous northern provinces, Pagasa said. Communities in the typhoon's path are braced for the impact of expected winds of up to 200 kph (124 mph). Local governments on Tuesday began evacuating some people living in the storm's path. The governor of Cagayan province, which has suspended schools and closed offices, said more than 12,000 people were evacuated from at least a dozen coastal and mountain towns by Tuesday evening. "It's a powerful typhoon and we want to take as many preemptive measures as possible," Gov. Cagayan Manuel Mamba told CNN. Officials have also canceled at least a dozen domestic flights from Wednesday through Friday. Taiwan and China are also bracing for potentially heavy rainfall and strong winds. The typhoon prompted Taiwan to cancel some of its annual military drills Tuesday as it braced for what could be the strongest typhoon to hit the self-governing island in four years. The typhoon's outer bands are beginning to impact eastern Taiwan, according to the island's Central Weather Bureau. It is expected to continue to weaken to the equivalent of a category 1 Atlantic hurricane as it tracks northwest, potentially making a second landfall in the next two days on China's southern coastline. China's National Meteorological Center raised its typhoon emergency warning to the highest level on Wednesday as Doksuri is projected to land by Friday along the southeast coast where Fujian and Guangdong provinces meet. Chinese authorities have told fishing boats to return to port immediately and warned farmers to take preventive measures to avoid flooding of crops. — CNN
