Typhoon Fung-wong Batters Philippines Days after Kalmaegi, Killing 10 and Displacing 1.4 Million

Typhoon Fung-wong, a super typhoon packing sustained winds of up to 185 kph (115 mph) and gusts reaching 230 kph (143 mph), barrelled through the northern Philippines on November 10, 2025, unleashing devastating floods, landslides, and gale-force winds that claimed at least 10 lives and forced over 1.4 million people into emergency shelters. The storm, spanning 1,800 kilometres (1,100 miles) wide, made landfall in northeastern Aurora province late Sunday, weakening slightly as it traversed mountainous regions and agricultural lowlands before exiting into the South China Sea near La Union province. Known locally as Uwan, Fung-wong struck just days after Typhoon Kalmaegi ravaged central provinces on November 4, killing 232 and complicating recovery efforts in a nation already reeling from back-to-back natural calamities. Philippine state forecasters warned of continued heavy rains posing risks in northern Luzon, including metropolitan Manila, even as the cyclone veered northwest toward Taiwan, where it is expected to intensify again by mid-week.

The typhoon's fury left a trail of destruction across provinces like Catanduanes, Eastern Samar, Nueva Vizcaya, Mountain Province, and Ifugao, where flash floods and landslides were the primary killers, according to the Office of Civil Defence (OCD) and provincial officials. In Nueva Vizcaya, three children perished in two separate landslides, injuring four others, while a similar disaster in neighbouring Kalinga claimed two villagers and left two missing, highlighting the vulnerability of rural, highland communities to rapid soil erosion during extreme weather. Exposed electrical wires and a house collapse contributed to additional fatalities, exacerbating the chaos in areas still without power restoration from Kalmaegi's passage. Over 132 villages in the north were inundated, with dramatic scenes in one locality where residents clung to rooftops as waters surged unexpectedly; more than 4,100 homes sustained damage, and about 240,000 evacuees remained in 1,200 shelters as of November 11, underscoring the scale of displacement in a country prone to such events.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr had preemptively declared a state of emergency on November 7, citing the compounded threats from Kalmaegi and the impending Fung-wong, which enabled swift evacuations and resource allocation under the national disaster risk reduction framework. OCD spokesperson Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV emphasised ongoing rescue, relief, and response operations, noting that while the typhoon's core had passed, lingering monsoon rains could trigger further hazards in vulnerable zones. Schools and most government offices shuttered on November 10-11, while over 325 domestic and 61 international flights faced cancellations, stranding more than 6,600 at ports after the Philippine Coast Guard banned sea travel amid 4-metre swells. Agricultural losses, though not yet quantified, are expected to hit rice and corn belts hard, building on Kalmaegi's estimated $1.2 billion in damages across central Visayas and Mindanao.

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The Philippines, situated in the typhoon-prone western Pacific "Ring of Fire", endures about 20 such storms annually, compounded by frequent earthquakes and over a dozen active volcanoes, rendering it one of the world's most disaster-vulnerable nations. This double-whammy from Fung-wong and Kalmaegi—the latter having also killed five in Vietnam—has strained local capacities, though Manila has not yet sought international aid; U.S. and Japanese offers stand ready via longstanding alliances. Climate experts attribute the increasing ferocity of these events to warming oceans, urging enhanced early-warning systems and resilient infrastructure, as seen in recent investments like the $500 million World Bank-funded flood control projects in Luzon. As recovery ramps up, communities in the affected north face weeks of rebuilding, with international monitors like the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tracking potential escalations if Fung-wong loops back or spawns spin-off systems.

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