At least 10 people were killed after typhoon Chan-Hom (locally known as "Emong") hit the northern Philippines with strong winds and heavy rains overnight, government officials said on Friday.
Ten residents were injured while four others are still missing after the typhoon made landfall in the northern province of Pangasinan on Thursday night, said Glenn Rabonza, executive officer of the country's National Disaster Coordinating Council.
Weathercasters said the typhoon has weakened into a tropical storm as it left the country on Friday.
Chan-Hom was packing maximum sustained winds of 120 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 150 kph when it made landfall in Pangasinan province. It is currently moving away from the country east northeast at a speed of 15 kph with maximum winds of 65 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 80 kph.
The storm is expected to be 430 kilometers east northeast of Aparri, Cagayan, on Saturday morning and 490 kilometers east northeast of Basco, Batanes, on Sunday morning.
It was the second disaster that battered the Philippines over a week. Last weekend, tropical storm "Kujira" (locally known as " Dante") lashed the northeastern region of Bicol and left at least 27 people dead and more than 50,000 others displaced.
Lying on the west of the Pacific, the Philippine archipelago is hit by about 20 typhoons and tropical storms every year.
Weathercasters say that the cyclones have arrived the country over one month earlier than usual, possibly as a result of global warming.
(Xinhua News Agency May 8, 2009)
