Flash floods and landslides triggered by Tropical Storm Tembin in the southern Philippines have killed more than 100 people, including more than 30 residents of one town who were who were swept into a raging river.
The storm slammed into Mindanao, the country's second largest island, on Friday, but it wasn't until Saturday that emergency teams glimpsed the full extent of the disaster. It struck at peak time for travel and Christmas preparations.
Police put the death toll as high as 133, AFP reported. Reuters reported more than 100 dead as rescuer operations continued.
Although the Philippines is hit by some 20 typhoons or storms annually, typhoons rarely strike Mindanao, home to 20 million people.
Romina Marasigan of the government’s disaster-response agency said landslides and flash floods triggered by Tropical Storm Tembin inflicted most of the deaths in the hard-hit provinces of Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur and on the Zamboanga Peninsula.
At least 28 people were killed and 81 missing in Sibuco and other coastal communities in the Zamboanga peninsula from mud and rock slides, according to AFP..
Mayor Bong Edding of Sibuco town said by phone that a search and rescue operation was underway for more than 30 people swept away by flash floods in the fishing village of Anungan, the Associated Press reported.. Five bodies have been recovered so far in the village.
“The floodwaters from the mountain came down so fast and swept away people and houses,” Edding said. “It’s really sad because Christmas is just a few days away, but these things happen beyond our control.”
He blamed years of logging in the mountains near Anungan for the tragedy that unfolded Friday, adding that he and other officials would move to halt the logging operations.
Rescuers retrieved at least 36 bodies from the Slaog River. The bodies were swept downriver from the flooded town of Salvador, Rando Salvacion, the Sapad town police chief, told AFP. Authorities in Salvador said they had discovered 17 other bodies upstream.
Thousands of villagers moved to emergency shelters and thousands more were stranded in airports and seaports after the coast guard prohibited ferries from venturing out in the rough seas and several flights were canceled.
More: From floods to fires, U.S. weather went to extremes in 2017
An inter-island ferry sank off northeastern Quezon province Thursday after being lashed by fierce winds and big waves, leaving at least five dead. More than 250 passengers and crewmen were rescued.
Tembin, locally known as Vinta, was packing maximum sustained winds of 50 miles per hour and gusts of up to 59 mph. It was forecast to move away from the southern Philippines on Sunday toward the South China Sea, moving closer to Vietnam.
“It is unfortunate that another tropical cyclone, Vinta, made its presence felt so near Christmas,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said, adding that food packs and other aid were being distributed in storm-hit communities.
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