Storm forces Philippine schools to shut a day after reopening

MANILA • Schools were ordered shut across the northern Philippines yesterday - a day after many resumed in-person learning for the first time since Covid-19 hit - as torrential rain and strong winds pounded the main island of the archipelago.

Severe tropical storm Ma-on struck the north-east coast of Luzon around mid-morning, raking the largely agricultural region with gusts of up to 185kmh, the state weather service said.

Two people were injured by falling trees in the mountainous province of Cagayan where intense rain caused the main river and its tributaries to swell, provincial disaster official Ruelie Rasping said.

"We're currently being hit by strong winds and heavy rain. The Cagayan river is rising," he said.

Provincial capital Tuguegarao was drenched with 98mm of "torrential" rain over a three-hour period after the storm made landfall.

Ma-on was expected to sweep in a north-west direction across the country and head out over the South China Sea by early today.

Some low-lying areas of the capital Manila were left in knee-deep flood waters, as the storm intensified the south-west monsoon.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr suspended classes and work in government offices in the national capital region and surrounding provinces until today.

It followed similar orders issued by provinces in Ma-on's path.

Ma-on is the Philippines' first significant storm since April, when tropical storm Megi unleashed landslides and flooding that killed more than 200 people.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE