Super Typhoon Man-yi had sustained wind speeds of 160 mph as it made landfall in the Philippines Saturday, triggering emergency evacuations across six provinces. Photo courtesy of Philippine Coast Guard/EPA-EFE

Man-yi’s severity is the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane, causing Philippine officials to warn people to brace for the possibility of deadly flooding and catastrophic rains.

Known as Pepito in the Philippines, the storm made landfall at approximately 9:40 p.m. PHT Saturday, pounding the island nation with gale-force winds and rain.

“There is a high risk of life-threatening storm surge with peak surge heights exceeding 9.8 feet (3 meters) in the next 48 hours over the low-lying or exposed coastal localities,” the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, PAGASA said in its latest storm update.

The storm is the fourth typhoon to hit the country in the last few weeks, collectively leaving more than 150 people dead.

Late last month, Tropical Storm Trami deposited roughly two months worth of rain across the country, leading to landslides and flooding. Over 120 people were killed and more than half a million more were forced out of their homes to seek shelter.

Man-yi is passing further south than the four previous storms, and officials expect it to cause more damage.

The storm picked up in intensity Friday afternoon prior to making landfall Saturday. It is expected to make landfall in the capital city of Manila sometime Sunday afternoon.

Meteorologists expect its strength to quickly begin dissipating after that.

“Subsequent imagery shows the center making a hard westward jog, with the eye rapidly decreasing in size and becoming increasingly ragged as it moves over Panay Island and the town of Bagamanoc,” the U.S. Navy Joint Typhoon Warning Center said in its latest update.