Super Typhoon Rai slams into the Philippines as rescue operations get underway
https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/16/asia/super-typhoon-rai-philippines-intl-hnk/index.html
Search and rescue operations were underway in the Philippines on Friday after super Typhoon Rai, known locally as Odette, wreaked havoc across the archipelago, leaving at least 14 people dead and seven missing.
Rai, the 15th typhoon to hit the Philippines this year, weakened slightly from a Category 5 to a Category 3 storm after making landfall Thursday on Siargao Island, a popular tourist and surfing destination on the central east coast.
The storm, which had initially packed winds of up to 260 kilometers per hour (160 miles per hour) with gusts over 300 kilometers per hour (185 miles per hour), later moved west bringing with it heavy rain and widespread flooding. As of 9:30 p.m. local time Friday, Rai was traveling over the far western island of Palawan with sustained winds of 175 kph (108 mph), which is equivalent to a Category 2 Atlantic hurricane. Heavy rain and strong winds were expected to batter the region in the following hours as Rai continues to track west into the South China Sea.
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Heard on BBC that over 350 were killed as several islands were hit