MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The NDRRN said that Melor was forecast to hit the country's Northern Samar province on Monday with winds gusting at 185 kilometers (115 miles) per hour, and then it was expected to move west at 19 kilometers per hour.
“A total of 161, 014 families/ 724,839 persons were pre-emptively evacuated in the Provinces of Albay and Sorsogon, and in Northern Samar,” the statement published at the council’s website said.
The national disaster monitoring council added that almost 8,000 passengers, 62 vessels, and 552 rolling cargoes were stranded due to the rough weather conditions caused by the typhoon.
The Philippines is hit by dozens of tornadoes and typhoons annually during the monsoon season between June and December.
In 2013, super typhoon Haiyan, also known as Yolanda, the deadliest Philippine typhoon recorded in modern history, hit the country, leaving over 7,300 dead and missing.
