Philippines typhoon death toll worsens

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/dec/04/philippine-typhoon-bopha-kills-fiveA powerful typhoon made landfall in the south of the Philippines on Tuesday with heavy rain and gusts of up to 120mph Link to this vide
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The toll of dead and missing from typhoon Bhopa in the Philippines has continued to climb in the worst-hit areas of the coutry's south.

At least 43 people died when torrents of water came down a mountain in New Bataan town in Compostela Valley province, on the island of Mindanao, and engulfed a school and village hall where people were taking shelter from the storm. Nine soldiers and an unspecified number of villages were missing, said army Major General Ariel Bernardo.

Six villagers drowned in floods in Montevista town, Compostela Valley, said a provincial spokeswoman. In nearby Davao Oriental province 51 people died, mostly in floods, while two men perished when fierce wind ripped their boat from its mooring and it sank on central Siquijor island, according to disaster response officials.

Bhopa, one of the strongest typhoons to hit the country this year, struck Davao Oriental at dawn on Tuesday then barrelled across southern and central provinces, triggering landslides, flooding and cutting off power in two entire provinces. It headed towards western Palawan province on Wednesday and was expected to blow out toward the South China Sea on Thursday.

Typhoon Bopha first hit the Davao region at dawn on Tuesday. Gusts of wind of up to 120 miles an hour ripped roofs from homes and a 300-mile wide band of rain flooded low-lying farmland. The storm toppled trees, triggered landslides and sent flash floods surging across the region's mountains and valleys.

Some 20 typhoons and storms normally lash the archipelago nation each year but the southern provinces are unaccustomed to such fierce weather. A rare storm that took the area by surprise last December killed more than 1,200 people and left many more homeless.

Officials were taking no chances this year, and on Monday the president, Benigno Aquino III, appealed for people in Bopha's path to move to safety and take storm warnings seriously.

"This typhoon is not a joke," Aquino said after meeting disaster-response officials. "But we can minimise the damage and loss of lives if we help each other."

Aquino outlined preparations, including evacuations and the deployment of army search and rescue boats in advance. Authorities also ordered small boats and ferries not to venture out along the country's eastern seaboard, warning of rough seas with waves of up to four metres high.

In Compostela Valley authorities halted mining operations and ordered evacuations to prevent a repeat of deadly losses from landslides and the collapse of mine tunnels seen in previous storms.

Bopha, a Cambodian word for flower or a girl, is the 16th destructive storm to hit the Philippines this year. Forecasters say at least one more storm may hit before Christmas.