234 dead, 258 missing in floods, landslides in Philippines

Dec 17, 2011, 13:18 GMT

Manila - At least 234 people were killed and more than 200 missing Saturday in floods and landslides triggered by a tropical storm in the Philippines, military and disaster relief officials said.

Tropical Storm Washi slammed into the southern region of Mindanao on Friday, bringing heavy rains that caused many rivers to overflow. The floods were worsened by high tides, local officials said.

Worst hit were the southern cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan, where armed forces rescuers have recovered a total of 208 bodies, according to military spokesmen.

The military said an estimated 258 were missing in the two municipalities. The Office of Civil Defence said the number could go down as authorities verify the whereabouts of unaccounted-for residents.

The floods hit overnight while residents were sleeping, said Iligan City Mayor Lawrence Cruz.

'We were all surprised,' he told a local television station. 'The people were already sleeping when the flash floods came.'

Cely Asinero, a resident of Cagayan de Oro, told a local radio station that she and her family were awakened by the sound of the rushing floodwaters, which reached heights of almost 10 metres.

'It was so loud,' she said. 'We tore off the roof of my brother's house, which was the tallest in our village. We could have drowned if we weren't able to get to the roof.'

Roman Pino, a 29-year-old father of two, also rushed his family to the roof of their house to escape the muddy floodwaters.

'It was pitch black all around us,' he recalled. 'We prayed so hard that we will be spared. We were only able to go down six hours later and we saw many dead bodies.'

Social Welfare Secretary Dinky Soliman said many of the dead in the coastal cities of Iligan and Cagayan de Oro were swept into the sea with their houses.

'Those on the riverbanks were actually washed out to sea,' she said.

Local television footage showed houses swept away by the floods or destroyed as debris smashed into them. Dozens of vehicles were piled up on many streets.

Trees and electric posts were toppled and residents clambered on to their roofs for safety.

Washi also caused the deaths of 18 people in the central province of Negros Oriental, while five died in landslides in the southern province of Compostella Valley, the Office of Civil Defence said.

Three people drowned in the town of Polanco in Zamboanga del Norte province, it added.

Soliman said President Benigno Aquino III, who expressed alarm over the high death toll, ordered the distribution of 'Christmas packs' to thousands of displaced residents, on top of the usual relief goods.

'The president ordered us to give them grocery items to make spaghetti and fruit salad to give them some sense of Christmas,' she said.

The weather bureau said Washi, locally called Sendong, strengthened as it crossed Mindanao. It was packing maximum winds of 75 kilometres per hour (kph) and gusts of up to 90 kph.

The storm was expected to exit the Philippines on Sunday afternoon after passing by the western province of Palawan.