Severe storm Doksuri strengthens as Philippines battens down
Government work and public-school classes in Metro Manila have been suspended on Monday
Manila: Doksuri, which has intensified into a severe tropical storm, may strengthen to a typhoon in the coming days, prompting the Philippines to scale back activity in the capital on Monday before it's forecast to head toward China.
Doksuri, called Egay in the Philippines, is moving westward at 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) an hour, with maximum sustained winds of 95 kilometers an hour and gusts of up to 115 kilometers an hour, the state forecaster Pagasa said.
President Ferdinand Marcos announced on Saturday that government work and public-school classes in Metro Manila have been suspended on Monday, when Doksuri is forecast to make its closest approach to the capital. Marcos, who is set to deliver his State of the Nation Address on the day, cited weather risks and a scheduled transport strike for the suspension.
The weather bureau said flooding and rain-induced landslides are possible, especially in areas that are highly or very highly susceptible to the hazard. Pagasa said that although the latest track shows the storm remaining offshore, a close approach or landfall in the northernmost part of Luzon hadn't been ruled out. Metro Manila "- which is home to more than 13 million people "- is located on the southwestern side of central Luzon.
The Philippine Stock Exchange and the Bankers Association of the Philippines have yet to announce if the stock market and currency trading will also be suspended on Monday. The Bureau of the Treasury said a weekly treasury bills auction will be moved to Tuesday due to the suspension.
The US military's Joint Typhoon Warning Center located Doksuri 464 nautical miles east of Manila. It forecast the storm would make its closest point of approach to Taipei at 104 nautical miles and Hong Kong at 321 nautical miles on July 27, before it heads to Shanghai the following day.
Doksuri may become the first typhoon to hit Taiwan since 2019, according to Chang Cheng Chuan, a forecaster at Taiwan's Central Forecast Center. The initial impact on outer-region circulation may be felt on Tuesday, with direct effects from Wednesday to Thursday, Chang said.
According to the Hong Kong Observatory, the chance of Doksuri moving toward the coast of eastern Guangdong "still cannot be ruled out" as it is forecast to "gradually" edge closer to the vicinity of Taiwan this week.