Tropical storm Noru expected to bring heavy rains, severe winds to northern Philippines

A tropical storm is expected to cause heavy rainfall and severe winds to northern provinces, some of which have already been hit by a cyclone last month, according to the Philippine disaster agency on Saturday.

Tropical storm Noru is forecast to bring rains over several provinces, including Cagayan and Isabela from Saturday night, and make landfall on Sunday, weather forecasters said.

Noru, with sustained winds of up to 110 kmh, comes after tropical storm Ma-On caused three deaths in northern Philippines in August, as it brought heavy rains that flooded communities and caused landslides.

This tropical cyclone is expected to intensify into a typhoon in the next 12 hours and may intensify prior to landfall, the weather forecasting agency said in a bulletin issued at 5 pm.

The disaster agency said local governments have been advised to do pre-emptive evacuations of communities in high-risk areas, as weather forecasters warned of flooding and rain-induced landslides.

The weather bureau said Noru was moving west toward the east coast of Aurora province or northern part of Quezon province, where it was likely to make landfall on Sunday afternoon.