Super Typhoon Mangkhut Made Landfall in in Cagayan province, on the northern tip of Luzon, about 1:40 a.m. local time in Philippines Saturday Sep 15,2018

Mangkhut was the strongest storm anywhere on the planet in 2018, carrying gusts of up to 325 kilometers per hour (200 mph) before it made landfall in Cagayan province, on the northern tip of Luzon, about 1:40 a.m. local time.

When it crossed land, Mangkhut was packing winds of up to 270 kph (165 mph), 120 kph (75 mph)

After the center of the storm passed the Philippines, Mangkhut's winds slowed enough for the typhoon to lose its "super" status, but it remains a very powerful storm system with maximum sustained winds of 215 kph (134 mph), equivalent to a category 4 hurricane.

It's now pounding the Philippines with heavy rain, and heading west into the South China Sea toward Hong Kong and southern China

An estimated 5.2 million people in the Philippines were within 125 kilometers (77 miles) of the projected path of the Super Typhoon, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

 

The scale of the typhoon could be felt in the Philippines capital Manila, more than 340 km (200 miles) from the eye of the storm, where heavy overnight rains have led to widespread flooding in urban areas.

Mangkhut is the strongest storm to make landfall in the Philippines since Super Typhoon Haiyan in 2013.It's also the strongest to make landfall on the Philippines' northern island of Luzon since Super Typhoon Megi in 2010. Northern Luzon was also devastated in 2016 by Super Typhoon Haima, with 14,000 houses destroyed and 50,000 homes damaged