MANILA, Sept 25, 2022 : A super typhoon charged towards the Philippines Sunday and was on track to slam into the heavily populated main island of Luzon, forcing the evacuations of vulnerable communities on the coast and in Manila, authorities said.

Super Typhoon Noru was packing maximum sustained winds of 195 kilometres (121 miles) an hour after an unprecedented "explosive intensification", the state weather forecaster said.

The storm, the strongest to hit the Philippines this year, is expected to continue strengthening as it makes landfall around 80 kilometres northeast of the sprawling capital Manila in the afternoon or evening.

"We ask residents living in danger zones to adhere to calls for evacuation whenever necessary," Philippine National Police chief General Rodolfo Azurin said.

The Philippines is regularly ravaged by storms, with scientists warning they are becoming more powerful as the world gets warmer because of climate change.

"The winds were fierce this morning," said Ernesto Portillo, 30, who works as a cook in the coastal municipality of Infanta in Quezon province where the typhoon could make landfall.

"We're a bit worried... We secured our belongings and bought a few groceries so we have food just in case."

Weather forecaster Robb Gile said Noru's rapid intensification as it neared land was "unprecedented". The meteorology agency said its wind speeds had increased by 90 kilometres per hour in 24 hours.

"Typhoons are like engines -- you need a fuel and an exhaust to function," said Gile.

"In the case of Karding, it has a good fuel because it has plenty of warm waters along its track and then there is a good exhaust in the upper level of the atmosphere -- so it's a good recipe for explosive intensification," he said, using the local name for the storm.

In Manila, emergency personnel braced for the possibility of strong winds and heavy rain battering the city of more than 13 million people.

Forced evacuations have started in some "high risk" areas of the metropolis, officials said.

"NCR is prepared. We are just waiting and hoping it will not hit us," said Romulo Cabantac, regional director for the civil defence office, referring to the National Capital Region.

People secure their boats in Baseco, Manila as Typhoon Noru approaches the Philippines on Sunday, September 25, 2022.

 - AFP