Eight confirmed deaths as Super Typhoon Fung-wong sweeps across the Philippines.

At least eight people have died after Super Typhoon Fung-wong (known as Super Typhoon Uwan inn the Philippines) swept across Luzon Island, the Philippines, on Saturday 8-Sunday 9 November 2025. This happened despite 1.4 million people being evacuated from areas deemed to be at risk from the storm. Three children are reported to have been killed in a landslide in Nueva Vizcaya Province, with another four being injured. Another landslide in the town of Lubuagan in Kalinga Province is known to have killed two people, with a further two missing, and another landslide killed an elderly person in Barlig, Mountain Provice. At least one person was killed in a flash flood in Pandan, Catanduanes Province. A woman is reported to have died in a house collapse on the island of Samar.

Storm damage in the City of Navatos in the National Capital Region of the Philippines.  Aaron Favila/AP.

Tropical storms are caused by the warming effect of the Sun over tropical seas. As the air warms it expands, causing a drop in air pressure, and rises, causing air from outside the area to rush in to replace it. If this happens over a sufficiently wide area, then the inrushing winds will be affected by centrifugal forces caused by the Earth's rotation (the Coriolis effect). This means that winds will be deflected clockwise in the northern hemisphere and anti-clockwise in the southern hemisphere, eventually creating a large, rotating Tropical Storm. They have different names in different parts of the world, with those in the northwest Pacific being referred to as typhoons.

The structure of a tropical cyclone. Wikimedia Commons.

Despite the obvious danger of winds of this speed, which can physically blow people, and other large objects, away as well as damaging buildings and uprooting trees, the real danger from these storms comes from the flooding they bring. Each drop millibar drop in air-pressure leads to an approximate 1 cm rise in sea level, with big tropical storms capable of causing a storm surge of several meters. This is always accompanied by heavy rainfall, since warm air over the ocean leads to evaporation of sea water, which is then carried with the storm. These combined often lead to catastrophic flooding in areas hit by tropical storms. 

The formation and impact of a storm surge. eSchoolToday.

Fung-wong was first observed as a convection current over the Central Pacific (about 560 km to the northeast of the island of Chuuk in Micronesia) on 3 November 2025. The current formed in an area with low vertical wind-shear and a sea surface temperature of 29–30°C (ideal conditions for tropical storm formation), and rapidly intensified, being officially upgraded to a tropical depression later that day. The system drifted to the east and gained in strength over the next 48 hours, being upgraded to a tropical storm and officially named Fung-wong by the Japanese Meteorological Agency on 5 November. 

By 6 November if was clear that the storm was heading towards the Philippines, causing the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration to give it their own name, Uwan (the Philippines names storms according to its own system, and does not recognise names given by the Japan Meteorological Association, despite the fact that that body almost always detects Pacific storms first, and the use of names awarded by the Japanese by all other countries in the region). This is only the second time they have ever done this before a storm entered their waters, a sign of how concerned they were by the storm. On the same day the storm was upgraded to a Typhoon.

The path and strength of Super Typhoon Fung-wong. Thick line indicates the past path of the storm (till midday GMT on Monday 10 November 2025), while the thin line indicates the predicted future path of the storm, and the dotted circles the margin of error at 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 hours ahead. Colour indicated the severity of the storm. Tropical Storm Risk.

On 8 November, Fung-woon began to intensify rapidly being upgraded to a Super Typhoon 13.10 hours before making landfall in the Philippines. When it did it brought with it sustained winds of over 185 km per hour, and gusts of up to 230 km per hour, over a storm front about 1800 km wide. This was accompanied by very heavy rainfall, with many areas receiving more rain in 24 hours than they usually do in the entire month of November.

The high rainfall was particularly problematic, as Super Typhoon Fung-wong passed over the Philippines only four days after Typhoon Kalmaegi, itself a major storm which brought with it major flooding. This meant that rivers and lakes were already at or over their safe capacity, and soil in many areas was already waterlogged, when the storm hit, making the flooding caused by the new storm particularly intense. 

Flooding in Tuguegarao City in Cagayan Province, the Philippines, on 10 November 2025. John Dimain/AFP.

As well as leading to larger and more frequent storms, warmer seas can enable them to change course rapidly, making it harder to predict where and when they will make landfall. This means that rising global temperatures, and the subsequent rise in sea temperatures, are both more and larger storms, but that tracking these storms is becoming much more problematic.

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At least 116 dead as Typhoon Kalmaegi sweeps across the Philippines.

At least 116 people are now known to have died, with many more still missing, after Typhoon Kalmaegi swept across the central Philippines on Tuesday 4 November 2025. The majority of the deaths occurred in the city of Cebu, and surrounding metropolitan area, with 35 people having apparently drowned in a single incident in the town of Liloan, with 76 people having died in the greater metropolitan area, despite over 400 000 being evacuated from areas deemed to be at risk ahead of the storm. On Mindanao Island a military helicopter taking part in relief efforts crashed during the storm, leading to the deaths of all six crewmembers.

Damage in the city of Talisay on Cebu Island following the passage of Typhoon Kalmaegi on 4 November 2025. Jam Sta Rosa/AFP/Getty Images.

On Negros Island at least 12 people have died and 12 more are still missing after heavy rains triggered a lahar, which buried a number of homes in Canlaon City. Lahars are ash-laden flash floods associated with volcanoes. They can be caused directly by volcanic eruptions, for example when hot lava encounters a glacial lake rapidly destroying an ice dam, but are also common in areas of high seasonal rainfall, where ash deposits from a volcano can build up during the dry season, creating dams on seasonal waterways, which temporarily halt the flow of water, then give way rapidly leading to dramatic flash floods. The Negtos lahar was caused by heavy rains associated with Typhoon Kalmaegi falling onto unconsolidated ash from an eruption on Mount Kanloan last year.

Tropical storms are caused by the warming effect of the Sun over tropical seas. As the air warms it expands, causing a drop in air pressure, and rises, causing air from outside the area to rush in to replace it. If this happens over a sufficiently wide area, then the inrushing winds will be affected by centrifugal forces caused by the Earth's rotation (the Coriolis effect). This means that winds will be deflected clockwise in the northern hemisphere and anti-clockwise in the southern hemisphere, eventually creating a large, rotating Tropical Storm. They have different names in different parts of the world, with those in the northwest Pacific being referred to as typhoons.

The structure of a tropical cyclone. Wikimedia Commons.

Despite the obvious danger of winds of this speed, which can physically blow people, and other large objects, away as well as damaging buildings and uprooting trees, the real danger from these storms comes from the flooding they bring. Each drop millibar drop in air-pressure leads to an approximate 1 cm rise in sea level, with big tropical storms capable of causing a storm surge of several meters. This is always accompanied by heavy rainfall, since warm air over the ocean leads to evaporation of sea water, which is then carried with the storm. These combined often lead to catastrophic flooding in areas hit by tropical storms. 

The formation and impact of a storm surge. eSchoolToday.

Typhoon Kalmaegi, known as Typhoon Tino in the Philippines, deposited 183 mm of rain onto Cebu Island in the 24 hours before making landfall. When it arrived, it brought with it sustained winds of more than 130 km per hour, with gusts exceeding 180 km per hour. Storms such as this are becoming more frequent due to global warming which is warming the oceans faster than the land, with the Philippines, which typically suffers about 20 storms per year, having been hit by twelve major storms since the typhoon season began in June this year: Tropical Storm Wutip in June, Typhoon Danas, Severe Tropical Storm Wipha, and Severe Tropical Storm Co-May in July, Tropical Depression Fabian and Typhoon Kajiki in August, Tropical Storm Mita, Typhoon Ragasa, and Typhoon Bualoi in September, and Typhoon Matmo, Severe Tropical Storm Fengshen, and Tropical Depression Salome in October. Furthermore, it is thought likely that a system currently known as Tropical Depression Thirty Two, which is currently crossing the central Pacific, will increase in strength and become a Typhoon-strength storm before making landfall in the Philippines this weekend.

A rescue team in the Talamban District of Cebu City following the passage of Typhoon Kalmaegi on 4 November 2025. Philippine Red Cross/Reuters.

As well as leading to larger and more frequent storms, warmer seas can enable them to change course rapidly, making it harder to predict where and when they will make landfall. However, this does not appear to have been the issue in the Philippines this week, where over half a million people were evacuated in advance from areas considered vulnerable to the storm. Instead, the storm has contributed to a growing corruption scandal in the country, with approximately 26.6 billion Philippine Pesos (about US$452 million) having been spent on flood defences which were found to be insufficient, incomplete, or simply absent as the storm approached.

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At least one dead as Typhoon Halong hits western Alaska.

At least one person has died and two more are missing amid widespread flooding in Western Alaska, caused by the arrival of a remnant of Typhoon Halong. The storm brought with it a two metre high storm surge, a record for the region, which inundated the coastal communities of Kipnuk and Kwigillingok overnight between Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 October 2025. Hundreds of people were forced to flee the area as their homes were submerged, with the state launching its largest ever air-evacuation to air lift people to the safety of Anchorage, 800 km to the east.

Flooding in the village of Kipnuk, Western Alaska, on Sunday 12 October 2025. US Coast Guard.

The flooding has re-ignited grievances over the cancellation of a US$20 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency to improve sea defences, and prevent climate change-driven coastal erosion which was leaving the villages exposed. The grant was approved by President Joe Biden in December 2024, but then rescinded by President Donald Trump in May of this year, as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. Whilst it is unlikely that sea defences would have been in place to protect the villages before the storm, the events have demonstrated the necessity of such projects, and left many community members feeling abandoned by the administration. 

Residents of communities in Western Alaska being evacuated upon a National Guard military aircraft. Joseph Moon/Alaska National Guard.

Ocean storms form due to heating of air over the sea in tropical zones. As the air is heated the the air pressure drops and the air rises, causing new air to rush in from outside the forming storm zone. If this zone is sufficiently large, then it will be influenced by the Coriolis Effect, which loosely speaking means the winds closer to the equator will be faster than those further away, causing the storm to rotate, clockwise in the northern hemisphere and anticlockwise in the southern hemisphere.

The structure of a tropical cyclone. Wikimedia Commons.

Despite the obvious danger of winds of this speed, which can physically blow people, and other large objects, away as well as damaging buildings and uprooting trees, the real danger from these storms comes from the flooding they bring. Each drop millibar drop in air-pressure leads to an approximate 1 cm rise in sea level, with big tropical storms capable of causing a storm surge of several meters. This is always accompanied by heavy rainfall, since warm air over the ocean leads to evaporation of sea water, which is then carried with the storm. These combined often lead to catastrophic flooding in areas hit by tropical storms. 

The formation and impact of a storm surge. eSchoolToday.

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Passage of Typhoon Yagi kills at least 39 people across the Philippines, South China, and Vietnam.

Typhoon Yagi is now known to have killed at least 39 people as it swept across the  Philippines, South China, and Vietnam between 2 and 7 September 2024. The storm was initially detected as a low pressure system to the northwest of Palau by the Japan Meteorological Agency on 30 August 2024. By 1 September it has moved to the northeast, gaining in strength to become a tropical depression as it entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility (an area of the northwest Pacific monitored by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration. The system was identified as Tropical Depression 12W by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center, and named Enteng by red by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, then as it intensified to become a tropical storm, formally named Tropical Storm Yagi by the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Typhoon Yagi made landfall in Aurora Province on Luzon Island, the Philippines, at about 2.00 pm local time on Monday 2 September, taking fifteen hours to move across the island before emerging over the South China Sea at about 3.00 am on Tuesday 3 September. During this time the storm lost considerable energy, particularly as it passed over the Cordillera Central mountain range, but still causing significant disruption. The storm raised the waters of the Marikana River, which flows through eastern Manila, to rise by 16 m, leading to flooding in the Metro Manila area, as well as in the provinces of Bulacan, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Cavite, Laguna, Northern Samar, Pangasinan, and Rizal. A number of ships were driven aground in Manila Bay, with two colliding and catching fire. Twenty people are currently known to have died as a result of the storm on Luzon, nine of them in Rizal Province, with at least more 26 missing and at least eighteen injured. Around 28 000 people in Metro Manila, Calabarzon, and Bulacan, lost their electricity supplies during the storm, schools were closed for two days, and most flights to and from Luzon Island cancelled. About 80 000 people were evacuated from low-lying areas, with 459 homes destroyed and another 6128 damaged. Several dams had to be opened to prevent them being damaged by high waters, adding to the flooding in areas beneath them.

Flooding in Rizal Province, the Philippines, on 2 September 2024. AP. 

After passing over Luzon Tropical Storm passed across the South China Sea, merging with a smaller depression and gaining significantly in strength as it moved west towards China. By 5 September the storm had gained suficient energy that the Japan Meteorological Agency upgraded it to a Super Typhoon, which is to say a typhoon with windspeeds of 240 km per hour or above, the equivalent to a Category 4 or 5 storm on the Saffir–Simpson scale.

In preparation for this 420 000 people were evacuated from low-lying areas on Hainan Island, and 500 000 from low-lying areas in Guangdong Province, with widespread cancelation of flights, non-essential travel, and coastal activities in both provinces as well as Hong Kong.

Typhoon Yagi made landfall near the city of Wenchang on Hainan at about 4.20 pm local time on Friday 6 September, bringing with it sustained windspeeds of 195 km per hour, making it the strongest storm to hit the island since Typhoon Ramassun in 2014. It passed across the island making, and over the provincial capital, Haikou, before briefly making landfall in Xuwen County, Guangdong Province, then passing out over the Gulf of Tonkin. Four people are reported to have lost their lives on Hainan Island, with another 95 injured, and 1.2 million people losing electricity supplies. Aa further nine people were injured in Hong Kong.

Heavy rainfall and fallen trees in Wenchang City on 6 September 2024. Luo Yunfei/China News Service/VCG/Getty Images.

Typhoon Yaagi gained in strength again as it passed over the Gulf of Tonkin, reaching Vietnam as a Category 4 Typhoon (i.e. a storm with sustained winds in excess of 209 km per hour), making it one of the strongest storms ever to hit northern Vietnam. In preparation for the storm schools were closed and fishing and outdoor gatherings advised against, as well as most flights, ferry services, and sporting events cancelled. The storm made landfall over the city of Haiphong, binging high winds and extensive flooding to the Red River Valley. fifteen people are known to have died in Vietnam, including four people hit by flying debris, another four, described as a family, by a landslide in Hoa Binh, and another man in Hai Dong hit by a falling tree.

High winds caused by Typhoon Yagi on the shore of Phuong Luu Lake in Haiphong. Nhac Nguyen/AFP.

Tropical storms are caused by the warming effect of the Sun over tropical seas. As the air warms it expands, causing a drop in air pressure, and rises, causing air from outside the area to rush in to replace it. If this happens over a sufficiently wide area, then the inrushing winds will be affected by centrifugal forces caused by the Earth's rotation (the Coriolis effect). This means that winds will be deflected clockwise in the northern hemisphere and anti-clockwise in the southern hemisphere, eventually creating a large, rotating Tropical Storm. They have different names in different parts of the world, with those in the northwest Pacific being referred to as typhoons.

The structure of a tropical cyclone. Wikimedia Commons.

Despite the obvious danger of winds of this speed, which can physically blow people, and other large objects, away as well as damaging buildings and uprooting trees, the real danger from these storms comes from the flooding they bring. Each drop millibar drop in air-pressure leads to an approximate 1 cm rise in sea level, with big tropical storms capable of causing a storm surge of several meters. This is always accompanied by heavy rainfall, since warm air over the ocean leads to evaporation of sea water, which is then carried with the storm. These combined often lead to catastrophic flooding in areas hit by tropical storms. 

The formation and impact of a storm surge. eSchoolToday.

See also...