Philippines Prepares for Typhoon Mawar and Cyclone Betty's Heavy Rains

Over 4,800 people have been evacuated, schools and offices were shut and flights halted in the Philippines as Typhoon Mawar, now known as Betty locally, inches closer to the country. Mawar is expected to move “generally northwestward” after inching close to the Philippines over the next two days. The typhoon was last spotted 445km east of Calayan island at the northern part of the Philippines, prompting alerts for heavy rains and wind and evacuations. The powerful typhoon is expected to get closer to the Sakishima Islands, off the main island of Okinawa and 360 km from Taiwan, from Wednesday.