HANOI, Vietnam – Typhoon Kajiki, the most powerful and destructive storm of the 2025 Pacific typhoon season, made landfall on Vietnam's north central coast on Monday, killing at least two people and injuring four others as it unleashed powerful winds and heavy rain.

The Vietnamese government initiated a massive emergency response as the storm approached, ordering the evacuation of approximately 600,000 people from vulnerable coastal areas. As of early Monday, with the storm just 110 km offshore, about 30,000 had already moved to safety. To aid in rescue and evacuation efforts, over 16,500 soldiers and 107,000 paramilitary personnel were deployed. Authorities closed all schools and airports in the provinces of Thanh Hoa, Quảng Bình, and Hà Tĩnh, where the typhoon made landfall with wind gusts reaching 166 km/h (103 mph).

Prior to striking Vietnam, Kajiki swept across southern China's Hainan island, forcing the evacuation of 20,000 people and prompting the closure of businesses and public transport in the city of Sanya. More than 21,000 fishing crew members were ordered back to shore.

The typhoon's influence was also felt in the Philippines, where it enhanced the southwest monsoon, bringing cloudy skies, persistent rain, and thunderstorms. The government issued a moderate general flood advisory for Metro Manila, urging residents in low-lying and mountainous areas to take precautions.

Kajiki is the latest and most intense storm in what has been a notably active 2025 Pacific typhoon season. According to official records, the season has so far produced 23 tropical depressions, 13 of which intensified into named storms, and five typhoons.

The season's activity began in early June with Tropical Storm Wutip, which impacted South China, Vietnam, and the Philippines. The first typhoon of the season, Typhoon Danas (known as Bising in the Philippines), affected the Philippines, Taiwan, and East China in early July. Later that month, the strong and erratic Typhoon Co-may, also called Emong in the Philippines, caused an estimated $73 million in damages across the Philippine provinces of Pangasinan and Ilocos Sur, as well as Japan's Ryukyu Islands and East China.

As the region recovers from Kajiki's immediate impact, meteorological agencies continue to closely monitor the western Pacific, where tropical activity remains high.