With 25 million people in its path, Super Typhoon Haiyan -- one of the strongest storms recorded on the planet -- smashed into the Philippines on Friday morning.
As the storm plowed across the
cluster of islands in the heart of the country, casualties were reported, more
than 100,000 people took shelter in evacuation centers and hundreds of flights
were canceled.
The storm brought tremendously
powerful winds roaring ashore as it made landfall in the province of Eastern
Visayas, disrupting communications with a major city in its path.
With sustained winds of 315 kph
(195 mph) and gusts as strong as 380 kph (235 mph), Haiyan was probably the
strongest tropical cyclone to hit land anywhere in the world in recorded
history. It will take further analysis after the storm passes to establish
whether it is a record.
As the monster storm spun toward
the Philippines on Thursday, President Benigno S. Aquino III warned the nation
that it faced a "calamity."
Category 5
strength
Haiyan, known in the Philippines
as Yolanda, appeared to retain much of its terrifying force as it moved west
over the country, with sustained winds of 295 kph, gusts as strong as 360 kph.
Haiyan's wind strength makes it equivalent to a Category 5 hurricane.
Video footage from on the ground
in the Philippines showed howling winds bending palm trees and whipping debris
down deserted streets.
Gov. Roger Mercado of Southern
Leyte, a province in Eastern Visayas, said Friday morning that "all roads" were
impassable because of fallen trees.
He said it was too soon to gauge
the level of devastation caused by Haiyan.
"We don't know the extent of the
damage," Mercaod said. "We are trying to estimate this. We are prepared, but
this is really a wallop."
The typhoon was forecast to
churn across the central Philippines during Friday and part of Saturday before
exiting into the South China Sea.
The storm is expected to weaken
slightly as it moves across land, but forecasters predict that it will maintain
super typhoon intensity throughout its passage over the islands.
A super typhoon has surface
winds that sustain speeds of more than 240 kph for at least a minute, according
to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Haiyan is so large in diameter
that clouds from it are affecting two-thirds of the country, which stretches
more than 1,850 kilometers (1,150 miles). Tropical-storm-force winds are
extending 240 kilometers from the typhoon's center.
A Filipino resident carries a baby as they cross a river
at a coastal village in Las Pinas, south of Manila, Philippines, on Friday,
November 8. Thousands of people are fleeing coastal communities and areas prone
to landslides in the eastern part of the Philippines ahead of Super Typhoon
Haiyan.
Filipino residents reinforce their homes in Las Pinas.
With 25 million people in its path, one of the strongest tropical cyclones ever
observed, Super Typhoon Haiyan, made landfall Friday morning in the Philippines,
the country's weather service reported.
Filipino residents reinforce their homes in Las Pinas.
With 25 million people in its path, one of the strongest tropical cyclones ever
observed, Super Typhoon Haiyan, made landfall Friday morning in the Philippines,
the country's weather service reported.
Residents of Legazpi, Philippines, are relocated to an
evacuation center on Thursday, November 7. Thousands of people were being moved
to evacuation centers as the storm, one of the strongest tropical cyclones on
record, barreled toward the central Philippines.
Residents of Legazpi, Philippines, are relocated to an
evacuation center on Thursday, November 7. Thousands of people were being moved
to evacuation centers as the storm, one of the strongest tropical cyclones on
record, barreled toward the central Philippines.
The storm approaches the Philippines in this satellite
image taken November 7 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
With sustained winds of 315 kph (195 mph) and gusts as strong as 380 kph (235
mph), Haiyan's wind strength makes it equivalent to an exceptionally strong
Category 5 hurricane.
The storm approaches the Philippines in this satellite
image taken November 7 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
With sustained winds of 315 kph (195 mph) and gusts as strong as 380 kph (235
mph), Haiyan's wind strength makes it equivalent to an exceptionally strong
Category 5 hurricane.
Workers bring down a billboard in Makati, Philippines,
before Haiyan makes landfall.
Workers bring down a billboard in Makati, Philippines,
before Haiyan makes landfall.
In anticipation of the storm, fishermen carry a boat out
of the water in Ormoc, Philippines.
In anticipation of the storm, fishermen carry a boat out
of the water in Ormoc, Philippines.
Philippine Coast Guard personnel stand in formation beside
newly acquired rubber boats after a blessing ceremony in Manila on Wednesday,
November 6. The boats were to be deployed to the central Philippines in
preparation for Haiyan.
Philippine Coast Guard personnel stand in formation beside
newly acquired rubber boats after a blessing ceremony in Manila on Wednesday,
November 6. The boats were to be deployed to the central Philippines in
preparation for Haiyan.
Super Typhoon Haiyan
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Photos: Super
Typhoon Haiyan 
Typhoon Haiyan one of the
biggest ever 
Philippines braces for super
typhoon
'Very real
danger'
The National Disaster Risk
Reduction and Management Council said Friday that one person had been confirmed
dead as a result of the storm in the eastern province of Surigao del Sur.
Authorities in Cebu said they
were unable to establish whether a woman who was hit by a falling coconut tree
in the north of the province was dead or injured. Neil Sanchez, a provincial
disaster management official, said authorities had lost contact with the town
where the incident happened.
On Thursday morning, a day
before the storm arrived, a 1-year-old child and another person died after they
were hit by debris from a tornado in the southern province of Cotabato,
authorities said. It was unclear whether the tornado was related to the
approaching typhoon.
Ahead of the typhoon's arrival,
thousands of people had been relocated away from particularly vulnerable areas
in Tacloban City, which is situated in a coastal area of the region that bore
the initial brunt of the storm.
Communications with Tacloban,
which has a population of around 200,000, were disrupted after the typhoon
struck.
Video aired by CNN affiliate ABS-CBN showed streets in the city flooded with
water and debris.
In a speech Thursday, Aquino
warned residents of the "calamity our countrymen will face in these coming
days."
"Let me repeat myself: This is a
very real danger, and we can mitigate and lessen its effects if we use the
information available to prepare," he said.
Authorities have aircraft ready
to respond, and officials have placed relief supplies in the areas that are
expected to get hit, Aquino said.
"The effects of this storm can
be eased through solidarity," he said.
Earthquake survivors
vulnerable
Authorities have warned dozens
of provinces across the country to be prepared for possible flash floods and
landslides. About 125,000 people nationwide were moved to evacuation centers
Some of the most vulnerable
people are those living in temporary shelters on the central Philippine island
of Bohol.
Last month, a
7.1-magnitude earthquake hit the island, which lies close to the typhoon's
predicted path. The quake killed at least 222 people, injured nearly 1,000 and
displaced about 350,000, according to authorities.
"This has been a quake hit area,
for the past three weeks people are still experiencing aftershocks," said Aaron
Aspi, a communications specialist in Bohol for the charity World Vision. "and at
the same time these rains are giving them a really hard time."
"Most of them are advised to
evacuate to sturdy structures," he said. "But there are a few thousand displaced
families in quake hit areas that are still staying in makeshift tents and now
that the super typhoon is here it is really heart breaking to see them
struggling."
Aspi said many peoples' tents
are drenched but they still too afraid to relocate to enclosed structures
because of the aftershocks.
Beach resort
threatened
Another island in the storm's
likely trajectory is the popular beach resort of Boracay. Some tourists there
were cutting their vacations short to get away from the possible danger.
Ross Evans, an aviation
professional from Florida, said there was "a definite urgency and panic" among
the long lines of holidaymakers waiting for boats to get off Boracay on
Thursday.
Speaking by phone before his
flight to Manila took off, he said he felt "horrible" for those who may end up
stuck in the storm's path.
Evans said he and his travel
companions, who are leaving the Philippines two days earlier than planned, "feel
very fortunate to have the ability to make arrangements to be safe."
Situated near an area of the
Pacific Ocean where tropical cyclones form, the Philippines regularly suffers
severe storm damage.
An average of 20 typhoons hit
the archipelagic nation every year, and several of those cause serious
damage.
In December, Typhoon Bopha
wreaked widespread devastation on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao.
The storm, the most powerful to hit the country that year, is estimated to have
killed as many as 1,900 people.
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