Typhoon brings three-metre storm surge to Philippines

Typhoon Usagi made landfall in Luzon in the far north-east of Philippines early on Thursday afternoon local time with sustained winds of around 175km/h (109mph) and gusts of up to 240km/h (149mph). It also brought a three-metre storm surge and torrential rainfall exceeding 200mm (8in).

The storm, which weakened when it made landfall, is expected to continue moving north-westwards near the Babuyan Islands.

This latest typhoon comes hot on the heels of Typhoon Toraji earlier in the week and yet another severe tropical storm is approaching from the east. It is called Man-yi and is forecast to hit Luzon as a potentially very strong typhoon this weekend.