Death toll rises to 110 in the Philippines from tropical storm Nalgae
Manila, Nov 1 (EFE).- At least 110 people lost their lives and 33 remain missing due to floods and landslides caused by tropical storm Nalgae, which crossed the Philippines over the weekend, according to a Tuesday update from officials.
More than half of the deaths occurred in the autonomous region of Bangsamoro, in the southwest of the country, according to the latest report from the National Council for Disaster Risk Reduction and Management, which confirmed 79 deaths, adding there may be at least another 31.
In the municipality of Datu Odin Sinsuat, in Bangsamoro, Philippine Coast Guard teams sank long wooden sticks in search of bodies trapped by a thick mantle of mud that reaches hip height, according to images posted on Facebook by the council.
In other parts of the region, floods persist while coastguards strive to care for those affected and distribute emergency aid.
In addition, 101 people were injured in the aftermath of Nalgae, known in the Philippines as Paeng, which caused infrastructure damage estimated at PHP 757 million ($ 13 million.)
More than 865,000 people were displaced from their homes, 347,000 of them in evacuation centers established by authorities, while Nalgae affected 2.4 million people or 741,000 families.
The category three tropical storm with maximum winds of 95 kmph made its first landfall Saturday and left the territory Sunday afternoon.
Another tropical storm, called Banyan and of a smaller category, was on Tuesday near eastern Mindanao, although meteorologists estimate it will lose strength enroute to the island.
Nalgae made landfall just over a month after Typhoon Noru passed through the Philippines, which in September caused at least 12 deaths and about 14,000 evacuees.
About 20 typhoons hit the Philippines every year, one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to the effects of climate change. EFE
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