The World's Most Powerful Storm Slams Into The Philippines

Super Typhoon Haiyan - which is being called one of the strongest tropical cyclones ever - has slammed into central Philippines, where it is early morning Friday local time, according to the Associated Press.

The typhoon is packing sustained winds of up to 200 mph and gusts of up to 225 mph, which makes it equivalent to a Category 5 hurricane, according to LiveScience. The storm surge could reach up to 23 feet.

Brian McNoldy, a tropical weather expert at the University of Miami told LiveScience "It's about as strong as tropical cyclones can get on Earth."

This image below was taken by the Japan Meteorological Agency.