Northern Luzon In Philippines Braces For Possible Super Typhoon

(MENAFN- Live Mint) (Bloomberg) -- Typhoon Ragasa may develop into a super typhoon on Sunday as it approaches the northern part of the main Luzon island in the Philippines, the weather bureau said, threatening rice and corn crops.

The center of the eye of the typhoon - known locally as Nando - was 610 kilometers (379 miles) east of Tuguegarao City in Cagayan, a major rice-producing province, according to an update from the national weather agency Pagasa issued at 5 a.m. local time. It's packing maximum sustained winds of 175 km per hour, it said. Under Pagasa's classification, super typhoons have maximum sustained winds of at least 185 km/h near the center.

Ragasa may pass close or make landfall over Batanes or Babuyan Islands on the northern tip of Luzon on Monday, with the weather bureau warning there's a high risk of storm surge exceeding 3 meters (10 feet) along the coastal areas of those places and nearby provinces over the next 48 hours.

September and October are the peak harvesting season for rice in the Philippines. The Southeast Asian nation, the world's biggest rice buyer, has suspended imports of the national staple for 60 days from this month to support local farmers.

The government said on Saturday that about 380 individuals have been evacuated from the northern and central parts of Luzon due to threats posed by the typhoon.

The Philippines is one of the most natural disaster-prone countries in the world, where about 20 cyclones pass through each year. In 2013, Super Typhoon Haiyan killed more than 6,000 in the country.

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