MANILA, Oct 16, 2010 (AFP) – Philippine residents battened down the hatches as Typhoon Megi appeared on track to hit the north of the country late Sunday.
President Benigno Aquino Saturday ordered relief goods and rescue equipment at the ready and billboards to be taken down to avoid possible harm when the typhoon starts affecting the north of the main island of Luzon.
"I ask our countrymen in affected areas to cooperate with their... provincial and national officials in ensuring orderly and efficient preparations are made," he said in a statement.
"We do not want to unduly alarm the public but there is nothing lost by being prepared."
He said hourly advisories would inform the public of expected rainfall levels and which areas had to be evacuated if necessary.
Packing sustained winds of 140 kilometres (87 miles) an hour near its centre, Megi was 860 kilometres east of Luzon's northeast coast at 3:00pm (0700 GMT), the state weather service said.
It is expected to make landfall on Monday afternoon, but forecasters warned that strong winds and likely heavy rainfall were expected from Sunday afternoon.
Aquino sacked the head of the state weather bureau in mid-July, accusing him of making a wrong forecast when Typhoon Conson unexpectedly struck the capital Manila, killing several dozen people and blacking out much of Luzon for three days.
Tropical Storm Ketsana and Typhoon Parma struck Luzon within a week of each other in late September and early October last year, killing more than a thousand people.
