Authorities in the Philippines announced Monday that five rescuers died after being dispatched to a flooded village during a strong storm, without providing any information on their causes of death.
The massively populated main island of Luzon in the Philippines has been battered by Super Typhoon Noru’s fierce winds and torrential rain, forcing thousands of people to abandon their homes.
The storm saw an unusual “explosive intensification,” according to the state weather forecaster, and was packing maximum sustained winds of 195 km/h (121 mph).
The most powerful storm to hit the Philippines this year, Noru, made landfall at 5:30 at Burdeos municipality on the Polillo islands, which are part of Quezon province (0930 GMT).
General Rodolfo Azurin, the head of the Philippine National Police, said, “We advise residents living in hazardous zones to abide by requests for evacuation whenever necessary.”