MANILA, Dec. 3-- The Philippine government expected zero casualty from a strong typhoon which might hit eastern part of the country this week, a senior government official said Wednesday.

"Definitely, we are preparing for that," said Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda in a news briefing in Malacanang, the presidential palace, adding that the government is making all efforts to seek for a "zero casualty."

According to U.S. Joint Typhoon Warning Center, the Hagupit may have maximum sustained winds of 240 kilometers per hour near the center on Thursday evening which is slightly higher than Haiyan's 230 kph in last November.

Typhoon Haiyan (local name "Yolanda") struck most parts of the country and left more than 6,000 people dead.

Lacierda said the government could not make assessment on the impact of Hagupit which could be as strong as Haiyan.

"But, we have learned a lesson from Typhoon Yolanda, so I think we are going to be prepared for this typhoon," Lacierda added.

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