coast late Saturday, toppling trees and knocking out power in a region
where 650,000 people have fled to safety, still haunted by the massive
death and destruction wrought by a monster storm last year. APreports:
Packing maximum sustained winds of 175 kilometers (109 miles) per hour
and gusts of 210 kph (130 mph), Hagupit made landfall in Dolores, a
coastal town facing the Pacific in Eastern Samar province, according
to the Philippines' weather agency. There were no immediate reports of
casualties.
Although it was unlikely to reach the unprecedented strength of
Typhoon Haiyan, Hagupit's strong winds and heavy rain were enough to
possibly cause major damage to an impoverished region still reeling
from the devastating November 2013 storm, which left more than 7,300
people dead or missing.
"There are many trees that have toppled, some of them on the highway,"
police Senior Inspector Alex Robin said by phone late Saturday from
Dolores, hours before Hagupit made landfall. "We are totally in the
dark here. The only light comes from flashlights."
From Eastern Samar, Hagupit -- Filipino for "smash" or "lash" -- was
expected to hammer parts of a string of island provinces that was
devastated by Haiyan's tsunami-like storm surges and ferocious winds.
Hagupit weakened slightly on Saturday, but remained dangerously
powerful and erratic.
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