Qa'dah 11, 1431, Oct 19, 1431, SPA -- A super typhoon that killed 10 people and flattened forests in the northern Philippines dumped heavy rains on the capital Tuesday as it headed across the sea to menace its next likely targets in southern China, the Associated Press reported. Typhoon Megi struck the Philippine archipelago with ferocious winds of 140 miles (225 kilometers) per hour Monday, churning up huge waves and smashing trees and power lines as it moved inland. It weakened over the mountains of the main northern island of Luzon. After it exited into the South China Sea on Tuesday, Megi was almost stationary packing winds of 108 mph (175 kph) but was forecast to regain strength before its expected landfall in southern China on Thursday. Chinese authorities evacuated 140,000 people from a coastal province. The storm could also eventually hit Vietnam, which already was suffering from unrelated flooding that has killed 41 people. On Monday, surging currents on Vietnam's flooded main highway swept away a bus and 20 of its passengers, including a boy pulled from his mother's grasp. In Vietnam, officials say up to 31.5 inches (800 millimeters) of rain have pounded areas in just a few days, forcing 126,000 people to flee their homes. Earlier flooding this month left more than 80 people dead or missing. The Honk Kong Observatory said Megi was expected to hit land Thursday. An official from the press office of the China Meteorological Administration said the typhoon could hit the coastlines of Guangdong and Hainan provinces on Thursday or Friday. The meteorologists issued a second-highest alert for potential wild winds and huge waves. Nearly 140,000 people fled homes in the southern island province of Hainan, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Monday. Thailand also reported flooding that killed at least four people and submerged thousands of homes. It also prompted the evacuation of nearly 100 elephants from a popular tourist attraction north of the capital.
