A powerful typhoon slammed into the northeastern coast of the Philippine's main island, Luzon, on Sunday. The storm killed two people, knocked out electricity and nearly ten thousand people to flee their homes.

Typhoon Sarika is packing sustained winds of 80 mph (130 kmph), with gusts up to 135 mph (220 kmph)

"The roofs of some house[s] were blown away and power was cut in some areas," said Mina Marasigan, spokeswoman for the government's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. "Minor landslides were also reported as well as floods. We're waiting for the typhoon to blow over to conduct a fuller assessment."

The cyclone began weakening after making landfall before dawn Sunday (1830 GMT/UTC Saturday), eventually raking across mountainous terrain and sparsely populated areas in the morning, and was expected to blow out into the South China Sea by afternoon.

(DW)