Disease risks rise after Philippine typhoon
Reuters, AFP, Real
Flood waters receded in the northern Philippines yesterday in the wake of a typhoon, but thousands of people remained cut off from help, hungry and at risk of disease after a week of severe flooding. At least 35 people died when Typhoon Nanmadol battered the main northern island of Luzon, adding to a toll of more than 1,100 dead or missing after floods and landslides this week, disaster officials said. "We need one great heave to deliver the relief supplies, find the missing, rescue the isolated, feed the hungry and shelter the homeless," President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said in a statement on national television. Casualties from the typhoon appeared to be low because people were better prepared after three major storms in two weeks. "Despite the heavy rains ... we have few casualties," said Colonel Elma Aldea, an official at the National Disaster Coordinating Council. The NDCC said 25 people died in Aurora province, north of Manila, where the typhoon first hit land. Disaster officials said there had been a landslide, but had no further details. They said 10 died in Manila and surrounding provinces, mostly from landslides and drownings, although flood waters had receded in most provinces as the typhoon rains eased. At least 13 people were missing in northern Nueva Vizcaya province. Some areas were still without power after high winds toppled 13 transmission towers in Bicol province east of Manila. The health secretary warned of the growing risk of disease, urging people to bury their dead quickly.
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People pass a muddy floodwater caused by a landslide from nearby mountains in Gabaldon national road province of Nueva Ecija north of Manila yesterday as they return to their homes after the passage of Typhoon Nanmadol. PHOTO: AFP |
