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Typhoon Vamco: thousands flee as third storm in three weeks menaces the Philippines

  • About 50,000 people living in the storm’s path, still reeling from deadly typhoons Molave and Goni, will be ordered to leave their homes
  • Vamco’s winds could reach a peak intensity of 130-155km per hour before it makes landfall, the Philippines’ weather forecaster said

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A man in a raincoat rides his bicycle through heavy rain from Typhoon Vamco in Quezon City, Philippines on Wednesday. Photo: AP
Agence France-Pressein Legazpi, the Philippines
Thousands of people were evacuated from their homes in storm-battered parts of the Philippines on Wednesday as the third typhoon in as many weeks barrelled towards the country.
Vamco was expected to graze Catanduanes Island – which was devastated by Typhoon Goni less than two weeks ago – before making landfall on the most populous island of Luzon later Wednesday or early Thursday.

Destructive winds and torrential rain were expected in parts of central and southern Luzon, the state weather forecaster said.

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Philippines faces third major typhoon in three weeks while still reeling from deadly storm Goni

Philippines faces third major typhoon in three weeks while still reeling from deadly storm Goni

About 50,000 people living in the typhoon’s path will be ordered to leave their homes, said regional Civil Defence spokesman Gremil Alexis Naz.

The Bicol region, which Vamco will cross as it heads towards Manila, is still reeling from deadly typhoons Molave and Goni, which killed dozens of people and left thousands of families homeless.

Swathes of the region remain without power and with only limited or no telecommunication services after Goni – the most powerful typhoon this year – toppled power lines, destroyed houses and flooded roads.

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