MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
A super typhoon barreled through the northern Philippines on Monday. Flooding and landslides displaced more than 17,000 people. At least three people are known to be dead, and at least five others are missing. The storm is now bearing down on Hong Kong and southern China. Ashish Valentine has this report.
(SOUNDBITE OF TYPHOON RAGING)
ASHISH VALENTINE, BYLINE: Super typhoon Ragasa made landfall in the Philippines' northern Cagayan province on Monday afternoon. Named after the Tagalog word for a sudden, quickening movement, Ragasa brought in sustained winds as strong as a Category 5 hurricane - over 130 miles an hour - heavy rain, flooding and landslides. Schools and government offices were shut across dozens of provinces. Meanwhile, Hong Kong's international airport has suspended hundreds of flights, beginning this evening through early Thursday, making this one of its longest shutdowns in recent memory. Meteorologists say Ragasa's already the strongest storm recorded worldwide this year.
JASON YIN: There's a sort of heaviness in the air that you get, usually, when the typhoons are nearby before the wind starts picking up. Calm before the storm, I guess.
VALENTINE: That's Jason Yin (ph), a Taiwanese American who's been living in Hong Kong for several years. He says authorities across the region are urging residents to get ready to secure loose objects, stock up on essentials and stay away from flood-prone areas.
YIN: Slower-perishable things like toilet paper - that stuff's all right. I noticed, like, the vegetable shelves are mostly empty.
VALENTINE: Across the Hong Kong-China border in the port city of Shenzhen, officials are moving nearly 400,000 residents out of vulnerable low-lying areas ahead of the storm's arrival. Schools and offices are already closed, and high-alert storm signals have been raised. The storm's predicted to affect millions of people as its trajectory nears China and Southeast Asia.
For NPR News, I'm Ashish Valentine in Taipei. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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