A man stands near debris on a waterfront road amid heavy rain due to super Typhoon Ragasa in Aparri town, Cagayan province, on Monday.

Thousands of people were evacuated from northern Philippine villages and schools and offices were closed Monday in the archipelago and neighbouring Taiwan as one of this year’s strongest typhoons threatened to cause flooding and landslides on its way to southeastern China.

Super Typhoon Ragasa had sustained winds of 215 kph with gusts of up to 295 kph when it slammed into Panuitan island off Cagayan province on mid-afternoon Monday, Philippine forecasters said.

Tropical cyclones with sustained winds of 185 kph or higher are categorized in the Philippines as a super typhoon, a designation adopted years ago to underscore the urgency tied to such extreme we

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