Typhoon Koppu leaves 2 dead in Philippines, 16,000 villagers displaced

Army, police and civilian volunteers scrambled Monday to rescue hundreds of villagers trapped in their flooded homes and on rooftops in a northern Philippine province battered by slow-moving Typhoon Koppu.

The typhoon blew ashore into northeastern Philippines with fierce wind and heavy rains early Sunday, leaving at least two dead, forcing more than 16,000 villagers from their homes, and leaving nine provinces without electricity.

Residents wade through raging floodwaters brought about by Typhoon Koppu at Zaragosa township Nueva Ecija province, north of Manila, Philippines Monday, Oct. 19, 2015. (AP Photo)

But after its landfall, the typhoon weakened, hemmed in by the Sierra Madre mountain range and a high pressure area in the country's north and another typhoon far out in the Pacific in the east, government forecasters said.

Boys play in floodwaters caused by Typhoon Koppu at Zaragosa township in Nueva Ecija province, Philippines. (AP Photo)

Several of the affected provinces, led by Nueva Ecija, were inundated by flash floods that swelled rivers and cascaded down mountainsides, trapping villagers in their homes and on rooftops.

Injured resident looks at the damage to his home caused by a fallen tree from Typhoon Koppu in suburban Quezon city. (AP Photo)

Hundreds of soldiers, police and volunteers have converged on Nueva Ecija, a landlocked, rice-growing province in the heartland of the main northern Luzon island, to help villagers whose homes had been flooded.

Residents and rescuers cut up a fallen tree on top of damaged a house from Typhoon Koppu in suburban Quezon city. (AP Photo)

Dozens of farm villagers stayed in the open overnight with their families, and their pigs and chickens.

A resident uses an inflated tire interior to bring a pig to safety amidst raging floodwaters brought about by Typhoon Koppu at Zaragosa township, Nueva Ecija province. (AP Photo)

Koppu's winds knocked down trees and electric posts, leaving nine provinces without power. Authorities suspended dozens of flights and sea voyages, and many cities canceled classes on Monday.

Residents huddle together under their umbrellas as strong winds and slight rain are brought by Typhoon Koppu Sunday. (AP Photo)

President Benigno Aquino III and disaster-response agencies had warned that Koppu's rain and winds may potentially bring more damage with its slow speed. But government forecasters said that there was less heavy rain than expected initially in some areas, including in Manila, but that fierce winds lashed many regions.

A Filipino man sits inside his makeshift home as strong winds and rains caused by Typhoon Koppu hits the coastal town of Navotas, north of Manila, Philippines on Sunday, Oct. 18, 2015. (AP Photo)