Thousands evacuate Philippine coast as Tropical Storm Fengshen approaches

As forecasters for coastal flooding warned of tropical storm Fengshen’s imminent arrival, rescuers said a number of residents of a Philippine island have fled their homes along the Pacific coast.

Later on Saturday, the eye of the storm was forecast to pass Catanduanes, an impoverished island of 270 000 people, with gusts soaring up to 80 km/h (50 mph).

According to the government weather service, Fengshen will bring heavy rainfall and a “minimal to moderate risk” of coastal flooding from 1.2-meter (3.2) waves being pushed ashore, according to the weather service.

In a frequently repeated drill on the island, which has previously been the first major landmass to be hit by cyclones that form in the western Pacific Ocean, more than 9, 000 residents of Catanduanes were moved to safer ground, according to the provincial disaster office.

Rescue official Gerry Rubio told the AFP news agency that the Catanduanes provincial government had instructed local authorities to “activate their respective evacuation plans” for residents of “high-risk areas,” including the coast, low-lying communities, and landslide-prone slopes.

Every year, the Philippines experiences an average of 20 storms and typhoons, which impact the region’s most impoverished areas.

According to scientists, climate change is causing storms to grow stronger as the planet warms up.

Fengshen comes as China is still suffering from a string of severe earthquakes and typhoons that have claimed the lives of numerous people recently.

At least 79 people were killed earlier this month in Cebu, central Philippines, as a result of an earthquake of magnitude 6.9

At least six people were killed and a second, magnitude 6.9 quake, which occurred days later, off the southern Philippines, was the result of a magnitude 7.4 earthquake. Following each earthquake, tsunami warnings were issued.