Thousands of people have begun evacuating from coastal areas of the Philippines as a super typhoon approaches the country this weekend.
The Typhoon named Mangkhut is now called Ompong right after it entered the Philippine Area of Responisbility (PAR), packing winds of 255km/h (160mph), and due to make landfall on the northern tip of the main island of Luzon by the weekend.
However, increased wave heights and strong rip currents could reach as far north as the southern and eastern coasts of Taiwan.
"In Taiwan, while there could be locally damaging wind in the south, flooding rainfall will be the main threat across eastern and southern areas," says AccuWeather meteorologist Tony Zartman. "The more populated areas in western and northern Taiwan are not expected to see significant impacts given our current track."
In southern and eastern Taiwan, the drenching rain will come following the tropical rainfall that Barijat brought to the island earlier this week.
As Mangkhut pushes westward and emerges into the South China Sea, it may weaken slightly; however, it is expected to remain a powerful typhoon.
To prepare for the possible impact, schools and offices are being closed and farmers are racing to save crops.
Almost ten million people are in the path of the storm, along with millions more in the coastal areas of southern China.
The Philippines is hit by about 20 typhoons and storms a year. Forecasters say Mangkhut is the strongest by far in 2018 - 900km in diameter, with sustained winds of 205 km/h.
Meanwhile, preparations in Hong Kong are already under way for the storm, though the latest forecasts suggest that Mangkhut will pass to the south of the territory later in the weekend.
