The island nation has been hit hard by Intense Cyclone Fung-wong, resulting in a minimum of two fatalities and forced the evacuation of over a million residents.
Authorities reported that the powerful weather system caused widespread sudden floods, coastal inundation, landslides, and destructive gale-force winds, prompting the relocation of 1.4 million people across the country.
Widespread Destruction and Rescue Efforts
In Pandan, Catanduanes, a severely affected area, disaster response teams documented rising waters reaching rooftop levels and homes washed out by strong flows.
“Our personnel rescued fourteen people stranded on the roof engulfed in flood in a flood-prone area,” a disaster-mitigation officer explained. “A father also called in panic, saying the roof of his house was at risk of tearing away by the wind. We rescued him along with four family members.”
By Monday, authorities confirmed two fatalities: a drowning victim in Catanduanes and another killed after her home gave way in eastern Samar.
Typhoon Strength and Projected Path
The super typhoon weakened to a severe tropical storm on Monday morning while moving over the Philippines’ largest island, home to the national capital.
According to meteorological authorities, the storm’s sustained wind speed dropped from 185 km/h to 165 km/h, though wind bursts were still reaching more than 275 km/h.
The storm system is projected to continue weakening while heading in the direction of Taiwan.
Response and Recovery
The national disaster response service indicated efforts were ongoing to evaluate destruction on buildings and roads.
Roughly 6,000 evacuation centres were activated to temporarily house tens of thousands of households.
Previous Storms and Environmental Factors
Fung-wong struck shortly following another severe storm, which killed hundreds of lives with another 135 missing before moving on to Vietnam, causing five deaths there.
Search operations for those still missing were halted recently over risks to emergency personnel.
The climate crisis is making cyclones more intense and common. Fung-wong is the twenty-first storm to impact the nation in 2025.
Scientists have found that the rate of intense cyclones hitting the Philippines has risen doubled in the past twenty years.
Global assessments indicate that intense storms cause approximately millions in dollars in losses to the country annually.
The Philippine president declared a state of emergency on Thursday because of the severe damage from Kalmaegi and anticipated impacts from Fung-wong.
