Typhoon Haiyan pounds Philippines: As it happened

Super Typhoon Haiyan — Category 5 storms like Yolanda cause severe damage as they can blow apart shelters and suck walls out and blow roofs off buildings due to the huge pressure they create.

Zee Media Bureau/Hemant Abhishek 4.45 pm: Parts of Philippines have received íntense` rainshowers — between 15-30 mm per hour due to typhoon Haiyan.

At 7:02pm: Rainfall amount in the Philippines for the past hour. pic.twitter.com/jmiQFnpLHd #YolandaPH | via @nababaha

— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

4.10 pm: At 6pm (local time), the eye of typhoon Haiyan was located at 147km west of Roxas City, officials say. 3.55 pm: Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA-DOST) says typhoon Haiyan has maintained its strength as it approaches the Calamian Group of Islands. 3.30 pm: Philippines` capital Manila braces for strong winds & heavy rains in the next few hours due to Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda).

From @MMDA: Because of Metro Manila's proximity to eye of #YolandaPH, we might experience strong winds & heavy rains in the next few hours.— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

3.15 pm: Typhoon Haiyan can cause an estimated rainfall between from 10.0 – 30.0 mm per hour (heavy to intense) within its 600 km diameter, government has cautioned.

Latest doppler image of Tagaytay station as #YolandaPH affects Southern Luzon. pic.twitter.com/bKqEIZuWtw | via @nababaha— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

2.30 pm: Hurricane expert Jeff Masters has confirmed to an agency that Haiyan is the strongest typhoon ever recorded. He said that the super typhoon made landfall with winds near 314 km an hour (195 mph) — making it the strongest tropical cyclone (typhoon) on record to make landfall. 2.25 pm: Due to damage caused by typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda), Kalibo Airport has been shut till November 11.

For collated government advisories on #YolandaPH, with a Google crisis & relief map, visit: http://t.co/9ZTp7QQC5I pic.twitter.com/36J9ygXE9U— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

1.30 pm: Typhoon Haiyan will be closest to Philippines` capital Manila at around 5-6 pm (local time) Friday when it is directly over Mindoro. Heavy to intense rain is expected during this period, the offical gazette says. 2.05 pm: Typhoon Haiyan will be closest to Manila at around 5-6 pm, and citizens are being advised by Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to stay indoors and out of the road during this period. 2.00 pm: Power has been cut in 90% of homes in Cebu as a precautionary measure, provincial government tweeted.

Due to #YolandaPH, consular services at DFA Satellite Offices in Metro Manila will be suspended on November 9: http://t.co/zgrRoW6wUB— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

1.10 pm: Category 5 storms like typhoon Haiyan cause severe damage as they can blow apart shelters and suck walls out and blow roofs off buildings due to the huge pressure they create.

FIRE ALERT: Don Carlos Elliptical Rd. Pasay City, 5th alarm involving residential as of 3:40 PM. #mmda— Official MMDA (@MMDA) November 8, 2013

1.03 pm: At 3pm (local time), the eye of typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) was located offshore of Tibiao, Antique. 1.00 pm: Philippines` national disaster relief agency has said that 687,000 people have been evacuated from homes in 22 provinces.

Share government advisories on #YolandaPH on Tumblr, with our master post on the typhoon: http://t.co/xDFeHn7C1L pic.twitter.com/tyZDpbJEz8— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

PAGASA said Metro Manila will experience the worst of #YolandaPH by 5pm or 6pm tonight, when the typhoon reaches Mindoro. | via @PTVph— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

12.15 pm: Of the three casualties caused by typhoon Haiyan, unconfirmed reports suggest that two people have been killed in Cotabato province and one in Cebu.

Bacolod Airport closed 8 November. #YolandaPH |via @CAAP_Operations

— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

12.00 pm: As of 2pm (local time), the eye of typhoon Haiyan (or Yolanda) was in the vicinity of Tapaz, Capiz, the Philippine government tweeted.

Children sleeping peacefully inside the Cebu City Hall @philredcross #YolandaPH pic.twitter.com/4AbBEvCoVU— Red Cross Cebu (@RedCrossCebu) November 8, 2013

11.25 am: The governor of the Southern Leyte province, Roger Mercado, has tweeted that relief operations have followed destruction. The uprooted trees are being cleared and municipal agencies are conducting clearing and assessment operations in all towns of the province.

Stranded due to #TyphoonYolanda: 3,093 passengers, 155 vessels, 13 motor bancas as of 1:00PM November 08, 2013.— PhilippineCoastGuard (@PhilCoastGuard1) November 8, 2013

11.19 am: Typhoon Haiyan, is being called `Yolanda` in the Philippines. The United States Navy’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center says it is expected to affect Vietnam as well.

The Huge Christmas Tree at Fuente Osmeña Circle was not spared by the string winds of #YolandaPH @philredcross pic.twitter.com/vbIWGkZTHw— Red Cross Cebu (@RedCrossCebu) November 8, 2013

Busuanga (Coron), Palawan Airport closed 8 November. #YolandaPH |via @CAAP_Operations

— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

1pm: Eye of #YolandaPH at the vicinity of Cuartero, Capiz; with max sustained winds of 200kph near the center & gustiness of up to 230kph.— Official Gazette PH (@govph) November 8, 2013

10.40 am : Apart from the monstrous intensity, Typhoon Haiyan`s reach is so large that it has covered two-thirds of the Philippines, say reports. 10.25 am : Philippine President Benigno S Aquino III warned the nation that it faces a "calamity." In a statement he informed the nation of the preparations to counter the destruction of typhoon Haiyan and said that three C130`s and 32 planes and helicopters from the Air Force were on standby and the navy had positioned 20 vessels in Cebu, Bicol, Cavite, and Zamboanga. 10.05 am : As typhoon Haiyan plows into the archipelago, three people were have been reported dead. Hundreds of flights have been cancelled and thousands have been evacuated.

One lane of Osmena Blvd. in #Cebu City closed due 2 falling cladding from Crown Regency. #YolandaPH pic.twitter.com/HafTwdnrc3 | @life_of_ri— Province of Cebu (@cebugovph) November 8, 2013

10.00 am : Manila and other regions that are in the path of typhoon Haiyan, like Northern Mindanao, Caraga, Central, Eastern and Western Visayas, Bicol, Calabarzon and Mimaropa are all on ‘blue alert’, says United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR). This is the 25th storm to hit the country this year and the province of Bohol, already affected by an earthquake in mid-October, lies in the storm`s path. A ‘red alert’ has been issued to move tens of thousands of people already displaced from tents into more secure accommodation. 9.20 am : Putting things into perspective, the devastating hurricane Katrina that rocked the US in 2005 had clocked 280 kilometres an hour. As per US Navy`s Joint Typhoon Warning Centre, typhoon Haiyan`s maximum sustained winds were recorded at 315 kilometres an hour, with gusts of 379 kilometres an hour. 9.00 am: NASA satellites have captured the magnitude of the Category 5 typhoon Haiyan. Sharing the image on the left on various social media forums, the US space agency wrote : "NASA Satellites see super-Typhoon Haiyan lashing the Philippines in this visible image of the storm.... The U.S. National Hurricane Center website indicates that a Category 5 hurricane/typhoon would cause catastrophic damage: A high percentage of framed homes will be destroyed, with total roof failure and wall collapse. Fallen trees and power poles will isolate residential areas. Power outages will last for weeks to possibly months. Most of the area will be uninhabitable for weeks or months. After passing through the Philippines, Haiyan is expected to move through the South China Sea as it heads for landfall in Vietnam. " 8.40 am: Super Typhoon Haiyan, the most powerful storm in the world this year, hit the Philippines on Friday, as millions of people huddled indoors and business in vulnerable areas shut down. Haiyan smashed the into central island the island of Samar, about 600 kilometres southeast of Manila, at 4:40am (2040 GMT Thursday) and was travelling quickly northwest, state meteorologist Romeo Cajulis told. More than 125,000 people in the most vulnerable areas had been moved to evacuation centres before Haiyan hit, according to the civil defence office, and millions of others braced for the typhoon in their homes. Authorities said schools in the storm`s path were closed, ferry services suspended and fishermen ordered to secure their vessels. In the capital of Manila, which was not directly in the typhoon`s path but still expected to feel some of its impact, many schools were also closed. Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and other carriers announced the suspension of hundreds of flights, mostly domestic but also some international. Cajulis said Haiyan was travelling quickly, at 39 kilometres an hour, and would travel across the country towards the South China Sea throughout today. State weather forecaster Glaize Escullar said yesterday Haiyan was expected to hit areas still recovering from a devastating storm in 2011 and from a 7.1-magnitude quake last month. They include the central island of Bohol, the epicentre of the earthquake that killed 222 people, where at least 5,000 survivors are still living in tents while waiting for new homes. Other vulnerable areas are the port cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan on the southern island of Mindanao, where flash floods induced by Tropical Storm Washi killed more than 1,000 people in December 2011.