POLA, (Philippines): Searches were under way Monday for seven fishermen in the Philippines as a typhoon swept across the archipelago, flooding low-lying areas and forcing thousands of people into emergency shelters.

Packing maximum sustained winds of 130 kilometres (80 miles) per hour, Typhoon Molave made landfall Sunday on the southern end of the main island of Luzon before moving west across the country.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said no deaths had been recorded. More than 70,000 people had sought shelter in evacuation centres in the Bicol region, Civil Defense said.