Manila - A 72-year-old woman was killed Wednesday as a powerful typhoon slammed into the northern Philippines, triggering landslides and flashfloods. The woman was buried in a landslide in Benguet province, 225 kilometres south of Manila, the provincial disaster-coordinating council said.
Classes have been suspended at schools in Manila and northern provinces because of heavy rains and strong winds brought by Typhoon Nuri, which was packing maximum sustained winds of 140 kilometres per hour and gusts of up to 170 kph.
The weather bureau said Wednesday that Nuri was located 50 kilometres off Aparri town in Cagayan province, 420 kilometres north of Manila. It was moving north-west at 17 kilometres per hour.
Disaster relief officials said several roads and bridges were rendered impassable from floodings and landslides.
The Philippines is battered by an average of 20 typhoons every year, and Nuri was the 12th to hit the country in 2008.
In June, more than 1,300 people were killed or left missing when Typhoon Fengshen battered the central and northern Philippines, sinking a passenger ferry.
