Philippines Christmas floods: death toll hits 49

MANILA – The death toll from floods and landslides that hit parts of the Philippines during the Christmas holidays has reached 49, the national disaster agency said today.

Twenty people are still unaccounted for, while over 550,000 people in more than 30 provinces were affected by the bad weather, German Press Agency quoted the agency as saying.

At least 51,400 were displaced by the floods and landslides and forced to stay in evacuation centres or with relatives and friends.

Nineteen of the fatalities were from the southern province of Misamis Occidental, where heavy rains triggered widespread flash floods and landslides, the agency said.

Other southern provinces reported 17 deaths, while 13 fatalities were reported in eastern and western provinces, it added.

Damage to agriculture and infrastructure has been estimated at over 1.43 billion pesos (RM110 million), the agency said. – Bernama, January 1, 2023