Disasters & Accidents

Philippines death toll from typhoon Vamco rises to 67

Manila, Nov 15 (efe-epa).- Philippine authorities Sunday raised the death toll from typhoon Vamco to 67, which has made landfall over Vietnam, where tens of thousands have been evacuated.

Mark Timbal, spokesman for the Disaster Risk Reduction Council, told media that 12 people are still missing due to the typhoon, which also damaged 25,852 homes in the north of the country.

According to the council’s data, 1.1 million people have been affected by the storm, which forced 370,000 people from their homes.

Rescue operations are still continuing in the north of the island of Luzon, where thousands remained trapped in floods.

Vamco, the fifth typhoon to hit the Philippines in less than a month, caused severe flooding and landslides in many parts of Luzon, including Manila, where they suffered the worst flooding in decades.

The typhoon, which made landfall Wednesday night with sustained winds of 155 kmph and gusts of up to 255 kmph, worsened conditions for many affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused more than 400,000 cases and 7,700 dead.

After having weathered 21 cyclones this year, meteorological service Pagasa said the Philippines could still suffer the passage of another four before the end of 2020, a year especially vulnerable to storms due to the impact of the phenomenon known as La Niña. EFE-EPA

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