MANILA, Nov 14 (NNN-PNA) – The death toll from Typhoon Vamco that battered the Philippines this week, has climbed to 53, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said today.
The PNP said, 22 people were still missing in the flash floods and landslides, triggered by the typhoon, which tore through the main island of Luzon from Wednesday to Thursday.
The toll is likely to rise as rescuers continue to search for the missing.
The focus now is on rescuing victims in the provinces of Cagayan and Isabela, in the northern Philippines. Using rubber boats, rescuers scramble to pluck residents stranded on rooftops of submerged houses in Cagayan and Isabela.
Cagayan Governor, Manuel Mamba, said today that, one rescuer was electrocuted last night.
Mamba, who described the flooding as the worst in memory, appealed for helicopters, adding, some of the flooded areas cannot be accessed by land.
Evacuation centres are full, he said, adding, some victims were moving in with neighbours, amid COVID-19 concerns.
Typhoon Vamco lashed a big part of Luzon, home to approximately half of the country’s 110 million population and 70 percent economic activity.
Non-stop torrential rains have been dumped by Vamco and the cyclones, before it forced operators of dams in Luzon, to open the floodgates to release water, as the reservoir’s levels breached the spilling marks.– NNN-PNA
