A massive typhoon is battering the Philippines, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee their homes in the wake of one of the worst storms to hit the country.
Paul, give us the damage report.
The torrential rains and fierce winds have all but shut down Manila as Typhoon Rammasun passed through the region after cutting a path across the main island.
At least 13 people have been killed and over 3-hundred-70-thousand residents ordered to evacuate to shelters.
According to the national disaster management council, many of the fatalities were people who died after being hit by falling trees, power lines and buildings.
Widespread blackouts have also been reported with millions of households still without electricity.
The Philippine Red Cross said effective preparations and greater public cooperation with the government helped to reduce the number of casualties and damage.
“Clean-up operations would be number one, restoration of some facilities would be a priority, plus evacuating and looking at lessons learned here.”
Around 20 major storms pass over the Philippines each year.
The Tropical Storm Risk agency predicts the typhoon, also known as Glenda, will gain strength to a category-three storm over the next couple days once it heads back to sea before heading to China.
