Death toll in Philippine flash floods rises to 521

 

The Philippine Red Cross says the death toll from storm-triggered flash floods that devastated a wide swath of the country’s south has risen to 521. 

Philippine Red Cross Secretary General Gwendolyn Pang on Sunday said that the death toll would most likely rise, with 458 people still missing and many villages remaining isolated and unreached by overwhelmed disaster-response personnel. 

Pang says the hardest-hit cities were Cagayan de Oro city, where at least 239 people died, and nearby Iligan, where Red Cross aid workers reported 195 dead, mostly children and women. 

Tropical Storm Washi started to blow away toward the South China Sea today, allowing the weather to clear and disaster-response contingents to intensify search-and-rescue work. 

Philippine floods wipe out homes

 

Wensito Pulusan stared in shock at where his house used to stand before floods tore through his village in the southern Philippine city of Cagayan de Oro. 

The 49-year-old driver could not believe that the once-lively community had become a muddy patch littered with debris, toppled trees and washed-out vehicles. 

“It’s like a wasteland now, there are no houses left,” he said. 

“Everything was swept away, even dump trucks were carried by the floods.” Pulusan, his wife and 20-year-old daughter survived the floods by climbing up the roof of his brother’s house, which was eventually torn off and swept to a nearby beach. 

“By the mercy of God, we survived and we are very thankful for that,” he said, adding that many neighbours were dead. The bodies were stored in a nearby public school. 

The floods were caused by Tropical Storm Washi, which slammed into the southern Philippines on Friday. The area is rarely hit by cyclones and the rushing waters came in the night, catching many residents by surprise. 

Rovmel Trinidad, a resident of Iligan City, said he and his mother were attending Christmas dawn Catholic Mass when the floods came. 

“The rains had stopped so we didn’t think it would be that bad,” he told a Manila radio station. “But the floods suddenly rose up to our waists and continued to rise.” Survivors appealed for food, water and other relief goods as supplies became scarce. 

In many places, there were long lines of residents trying to get water from pumps, withdrawing money from bank machines and getting aid from organizations such as Red Cross. 

“People here need food,” Arman, a resident of Cagayan de Oro City, told a Manila radio station. “I hope the government can send more food, which is the most important thing now.” 

Take By: The Hindu