BY RAPPLER.COM
POSTED ON 12/04/2012 3:32 PM | UPDATED 12/04/2012 8:27 PM
MANILA, Philippines (2nd UPDATE) – Typhoon "Pablo" (international name: Bopha) killed at least 7 people on Tuesday, December 4, as the strongest storm to hit the country this year forced more than 50,000 to seek refuge in emergency shelters, officials said.
Six people were killed, including an elderly woman who was crushed to death when a tree fell on her house, the Agence France-Presse (AFP) quoted rescue officials as saying Tuesday afternoon. The AFP said the officials did not identify the other 5 or say how they had died.
It's not clear if the 6 already include the 3 members of a family who died in Compostela town, Compostela Valley.
At around 6 pm Tuesday, the local Army told reporters that a soldier died in a flashflood in New Bataan town, Compostela Valley. At least 20 people were also reported missing in the town.
Four fishermen were also reported missing off Mindanao's east coast, said Freddie Bendulo, planning and development officer of Davao Oriental province.
Capt Severino David of the Army's Eastern Mindanao Command disaster response task group, said rescue teams were having difficulty reaching New Bataan, Compostela Valley, as many roads remain closed due to landslides caused by heavy rains.
He said a flashflood hit the area washing out homes and a military
patrol base. A first lieutenant was reported injured while a sergeant
was reported killed.
David could not ascertain the time the flashflood took place but said
it happened sometime between 4 a.m. and 10 a.m. at the height of
Pablo's onslaught in the area.
While it has slightly weakened, Pablo has forced over 53,000 people out of their homes.By early afternoon, the typhoon had slowed and weakened somewhat with top gusts of 195 kilometers an hour, the state weather service said.
A total of 145 flights to and from Mindanao and the central islands had been grounded since Monday night and more than 3,000 ferry passengers were stranded as vessels were ordered to stay in port.
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