NAGA, the Philippines — Typhoon Hagupit began battering the Philippines late Saturday, with strong winds and rain expected to pummel a central belt of the island nation for days as the storm churns westward.

With the memories of last year’s devastating typhoon still fresh, hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated from dangerous coastal areas before the storm hit. While Hagupit was weaker Saturday than the earlier typhoon, which killed more than 7,000 people, it is the most powerful storm to hit the country this year.

In Luzon Island’s southern Bicol region, the storm toppled trees, triggered mudslides and sent waves spraying across seaside roadways. The storm continued to weaken Sunday morning, with sustained winds of 100 m.p.h., as it drove west to Masbate Island, Philippine government meteorologists said.