Landslides triggered by one of the strongest storms in decades have killed at least 15 people in the southern Philippines, as parts of East Asia braced for the impending storm.
Typhoon Bavi, which stretches 1,000 km (620 miles) at its widest point – roughly the width of France – is crossing the Pacific towards Taiwan.
Rain is expected to fall over northern and eastern Taiwan, as well as a remote Japanese island chain, before making landfall in southeast China on Saturday.
Dozens of flights were canceled while schools suspended classes across the region. Supermarket shelves have been cleaned as residents stock up in preparation for the typhoon.
On the Philippine island of Mindanao, families were buried overnight by landslides and rescuers are still searching for the missing.
Moderate to heavy rain will continue to flood parts of the country through the weekend, officials say.
Taiwanese authorities have warned that Bavi could bring up to 1 m of precipitation. Some 29,000 soldiers have been mobilized to take part in relief operations, according to the island’s defense ministry.
Bavi is expected to be the largest storm, in terms of magnitude, to hit the island since 1987, Taiwan’s Central Meteorological Administration told Reuters.
Farmers across the region rushed to harvest or protect their crops as the weather held up earlier Friday, while fishermen took care to secure their boats.
“Don’t let today’s fine and calm weather fool you. A storm like this could be the most terrifying,” Chen Ming-hui, a 60-year-old fisherman, told Reuters.
Thousands of sandbags were distributed to residents and businesses in flood-prone areas.
Across the strait, China also warned of a “significant impact” from the typhoon which could move north after hitting the southeastern province of Fujian.
“Bavi’s large size and abundant energy mean its remnants and outer rainbands could move from Jiangsu and Anhui provinces to the Bohai Sea region,” said Ma Jun, director of the China Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs.
The northern provinces, which have “less experience” dealing with typhoons compared to the south, should “strengthen their preparations”, he warned.
Some forecasts suggest Bavi could make two landfalls in China.
In Japan, residents of the remote Sakishima Islands are also on alert. Photographs shared online show some of them taping up windows and draping windproof mosquito nets over their homes and shops.
Various airlines have grounded their flights in the region. Japan Airlines, for example, canceled more than 100 flights on Friday and Saturday, disrupting travel for nearly 20,000 passengers.
All Nippon Airways, another Japanese airline, canceled more than 160 flights through Sunday, also affecting about 20,000 people, according to Reuters.
Thai Airways and Malaysia Airlines also suspended flights to and from Taipei.
Parts of southern China are still reeling from the devastation wrought by Typhoon Maysak earlier this week.
Maysak has left at least 39 people dead, with rescuers still combing the rubble for missing people. More than 130,000 people have been evacuated, mainly in the Guangxi region.
Maysak killed large numbers of livestock and caused massive agricultural losses. This also stimulated two rare tornadoes in the central province of Hubei.
