Garpo Posted December 17, 2011 Posted December 17, 2011 At least 180 dead after storm pummels Philippines as reported by CNNStory here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curley Posted December 17, 2011 Posted December 17, 2011 Sounds terrible. Cagayan de Oro seems to have had the worst of it. Any forum members affected? Probably no power there and no way of reporting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Posted December 17, 2011 Posted December 17, 2011 Dead up to about 450 due to flooding and sleeping. Some reports say 11' (3.5m ?) water in CDO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Lee Posted December 17, 2011 Posted December 17, 2011 Sounds terrible. Cagayan de Oro seems to have had the worst of it. Any forum members affected? Probably no power there and no way of reporting?We have many friends and family in CDO and have been unable to contact them, so I am guessing the power is out as well as phones and cell phones, we will try again tonight. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve & Myrlita Posted December 17, 2011 Posted December 17, 2011 Dumaguette got hit. Our family there lost the roof of their house and are staying with a neighbor. All roads out are flooded. The power is out in many areas there. Robinson's mall was still ok so went were able to send some money so they could buy food. Sun Cellular was still working there. More later as we hear it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garpo Posted December 18, 2011 Author Posted December 18, 2011 (edited) The death toll from a tropical storm that pummeled the Philippines rose to at least 447 on Sunday, At least another 400 are still missing......Very sad story and looks like it is going to get much worse.CNN Story Edited December 18, 2011 by Garpo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jollygoodfellow Posted December 18, 2011 Posted December 18, 2011 MORE THAN 400 DEAD IN PHILIPPINES FLOODING :mocking: Flash floods have devastated a southern Philippines region unaccustomed to serious storms, killing more than 400 people while they slept, rousting hundreds of others to their rooftops and turning two coastal cities into muddy, debris-filled waterways strewn with overturned vehicles and toppled trees. Most of the victims were asleep Friday night when raging floodwaters cascaded from the mountains after 12 hours of rain from a late-season tropical storm in the southern Mindanao region. The region is unaccustomed to the typhoons that are common elsewhere in the nation of islands. Ayi Hernandez, a former congressman, said he and his family were resting in their home in Cagayan de Oro late Friday when they heard a loud "swooshing sound" and water quickly rose ankle-deep inside. He decided to evacuate to a neighbour's two-story house. "It was a good thing, because in less than an hour the water rose to about (3.3 metres)," filling his home up to the ceiling, he said. At least 436 were dead, based on a body count in funeral parlours, Philippine Red Cross Secretary General Gwen Pang told The Associated Press. She said that 215 died in Cagayan de Oro - a city of more than 500,000 - and 144 in nearby Iligan, with more than 300,000 residents. The rest died in several other southern and central provinces, she said. Many of the bodies were unclaimed after nearly 24 hours, suggesting that entire families had died, Pang said. The number of missing was unclear Saturday night. Before the latest Red Cross figures, military spokesman Lt Col Randolph Cabangbang said about 250 people were still unaccounted for in Iligan. The swollen river sent floodwaters gushing through neighbourhoods that do not usually experience flooding. A man floated in an inner tube in muddy water littered with plastic buckets, pieces of wood and other debris. Ten people in one home stood on a sloping roof, waiting for rescuers even as water still flooded the lower floors. Local television footage showed muddy water rushing in the streets, sweeping away all sorts of debris. Thick layers of mud coated streets where the waters had subsided. One car was thrown over a concrete fence and others were crushed and piled in a flooded canal. Benito Ramos, chief of the government's Civil Defence Office, attributed the high casualties in Mindanao "partly to the complacency of people because they are not in the usual path of storms" despite four days of warnings by officials that one was approaching. Thousands of soldiers backed up by hundreds of local police, reservists, coast guard officers and civilian volunteers were mobilised for rescue efforts, but they were hampered by the flooded-out roads and lack of electricity. Many roads were cut off and there was no electricity, hampering relief efforts. The missing included prominent Filipino radio broadcaster Enie Alsonado, who was swept away while trying to save his neighbours, Iligan Mayor Lawrence Cruz said. Representative Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro said that about 20,000 residents of the city had been affected and that evacuees were packed in temporary shelters. Authorities recovered bodies from the mud after the water subsided. Parts of concrete walls and roofs, toppled vehicles and other debris littered the streets. Rescuers in boats rushed offshore to save people swept out to sea. In Misamis Oriental province, 60 people were plucked from the ocean off El Salvador city, about 10 kilometres northwest of Cagayan de Oro, said disaster official Teddy Sabuga-a. About 120 more were rescued off Opol township, closer to the city, he added. Cruz said the Philippine coast guard and other rescuers were scouring the waters off Iligan for survivors or bodies that may have been swept away to sea. Tropical Storm Washi dumped on Mindanao more than a month of average rains in just 12 hours. It quickly cut across the region overnight and headed for Palawan province southwest of Manila on Saturday night. Forecaster Leny Ruiz said that the records show that storms that follow Washi's track come only once in about 12 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Lee Posted December 18, 2011 Posted December 18, 2011 I hope everyone's families and friends will be OK. We still have not gotten any replies from CDO but I read power was restored in some areas, so communications should return shortly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Posted December 18, 2011 Posted December 18, 2011 An after-the-fact question. OK, lets say we fast forward 6+ weeks or so, all dead are acounted for or assumed dead because missing. Entire areas wiped clean.... What now about the land? New group of squatters comes in? What happens if extended family comes in and sees squatters on land or in a house that the occupants were swept away? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Lee Posted December 19, 2011 Posted December 19, 2011 My wife just got off the phone with one of her friends in Cagayan de Oro but outside the the main city, and I spoke to her husband who is an American and also our friend. It is a terrible situation there. No power for 40 hours but what is worse is they said they will not have water for weeks to come. Dead bodies all over and they ran out of coffins for the children since so many died. Her families concrete home in Iligan got washed away totally and with all contents, so she said her parents are now homeless but thank God were not injured. We still have not been able to contact some other friends and family who live in CDO but we will keep trying. I know we have at least one member who has been asking about Iligan, so it would be appreciated if he can report back to us if his family there is OK, we hope so. Anyone else who is from that area could you please let us know how you or your family made out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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