Storm Doksuri Intensifies Into Super Typhoon, Nears Philippines

The Philippines canceled some flights and warned residents as Doksuri intensified into a super typhoon as it threatens to hit the northern part of the country en route to Taiwan and southern China.

(Bloomberg) — The Philippines canceled some flights and warned residents as Doksuri intensified into a super typhoon as it threatens to hit the northern part of the country en route to Taiwan and southern China.

The storm has maximum winds of 185 kilometers per hour (115 miles per hour) and gusts of up to 230 kilometers, the Philippine weather bureau said in its 8 a.m. bulletin Tuesday. The typhoon is moving northwest at 10 kph and may hit the northeastern portion of Cagayan province or the Babuyan Islands by Tuesday night or Wednesday afternoon.

Areas in the north, including portions of Cagayan, are under the third level of a five-tier wind-strength classification, and residents were advised to take shelter in strong buildings. The province, which has experienced massive flooding in the past, produces rice and corn, and hosts an economic zone.

Philippine Airlines and Cebu Air Inc. cancelled more than a dozen flights from today, they said on Facebook. More than 8,200 people and 73 vessels are stranded in various ports in the Philippines, according to the nation’s coast guard.

Located 277 nautical miles east-northeast of Manila, the typhoon has tracked northwestward at 8 knots over the past six hours, according to the US military’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center.

Taiwan and China are likely to be affected. Taiwan issued a sea warning late Monday night, though the weather bureau said the eye of the storm may not make landfall in Taiwan, the island’s Central News Agency reported.

In China, Fujian province upgraded its typhoon emergency response to Level III at 6pm on Monday, the third-highest ranking, Xinhua news Agency reported. Guangdong activated Level IV for the storm.

Taiwan, which on Monday started large-scale annual five-day military drills, canceled plans to use Fengnian airport on the east of the island due to safety concerns, according to the Ministry of National Defense. The air force had planned to use the civilian airport for takeoff and landing drills.

The east of the island may see increased rainfall today, but extreme heat is expected in the west of the island today, with the main impact not expected until later this week.

The typhoon is being watched closely in case it affects Taiwan’s largest LNG import terminal, Yung-An, or key oil refineries. The island is also home to plants making some of the world’s most advanced semiconductors.

–With assistance from Kevin Varley, Sing Yee Ong, Foster Wong, Cecilia Yap and Dominic Lau.

(Adds Philippines’ latest weather update, other details throughout.)

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