Typhoon Muifa had been downgraded to a tropical storm early on Saturday, its interaction with the islands of the central Philippines having brought wind speeds down below the 73mph threshold for definition as a typhoon – but only just. The storm will track very slowly westwards during the next 24 hours, close to the island of Mindoro, around 100 miles south of Manila.
More than 3300 people were evacuated from homes on the Bicol peninsula and five deaths were reported, with several more people missing. High winds caused much of the damage, but the torrential rain from this slow-moving storm also played its part, triggering landslides.
The main threat of tropical storms comes between June and November, but despite their damaging potential they are an essential part of the fabric of life in the Philippines as they bring a large proportion of the rain necessary for supporting crops and providing drinking water.
Moving from tropical to sub-tropical climates, the islands of the Azores give their name to a persistent anticyclone, the Azores high pressure system, which occasionally stretches northwards to bring settled weather to the UK during the summer months. It has forsaken the Azores over recent days however, allowing rain-bearing cloud to reach the island group. The town of Flores reported over 120mm of rain in less than 24 hours, not far short of the average for the whole of November.
