Storm Kills Two as Country Prepares for Typhoon Haiyan

Two people died in a storm in Battambang province on Thurs­day as Cambodia prepared for more heavy rains in the northeast that are expected to hit Sunday and Monday as Typhoon Haiyan leaves the Philippines, officials said Friday.

As of Friday afternoon, a report from Weather.com stated that at least four people were killed in the Philippines and 720,000 had been evacuated as a result of the typhoon, which knocked out power in provinces in the center of the country with winds of up to 200 kph.

Oum Ryna, deputy director of Cambodia’s Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology’s department of water resources, said the ministry had issued a warning Friday about the upcoming storm, which will cause heavy rainfall in Oddar Meanchey, Preah Vihear, Ratanakkiri, Mondolkiri, Stung Treng and Kratie provinces.

“On the morning of November 8, Typhoon Haiyan…arrived in the Philippines. Following the typhoon’s course, we have concluded that Typhoon Haiyan will arrive in the bay of central Vietnam on the night of November 10,” Mr. Ryna said.

“Cambodia will experience average to heavy rainfall,” he said, adding that the smaller storms that have hit Cambodia this week were not related to the typhoon.

“We ask that the ministries involved relay the information to authorities and the public so that they can take precautionary measures against the upcoming storm. We especially ask those living in the provinces that will be heavily affected to be more careful and prepared for danger.”

Heavy rain in Boeng Bram commune in Battambang’s Bavel district left two women dead on Thursday, district governor Teum Daret said.

“Two women were killed when their house collapsed on them, and another nine people were injured,” he said.

The storm that hit Kompong Chhnang province on Wednesday and Thursday caused damaged in four districts, Heng Choch, director of the provincial department of information, said Friday.

“Forty houses were destroyed and another 38 were damaged during the rainstorm on Wednesday night and Thursday morning,” he said.

The Humanitarian Response Forum, a network of U.N. and NGO groups, released a statement Friday noting that some areas of the country were also still suffering from floods.

“Waters have receded in the majority of the provinces, although extended areas remain flooded particularly in Banteay Meanchey and Battambang, as well [as] in the central provinces like Kompong Cham and Prey Veng,” the forum said.

So far this year, 168 people have died as a result of flooding and 1,735,828 people have been affected, 144,044 of whom have been evacuated to higher ground, it added.

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