Aid rushed to 64,000 displaced by Philippine typhoon
Pastor Dale Morgan
Aid rushed to 64,000 displaced by Philippine typhoon*
MANILA, May 9 (AFP) May 09, 2009
Food, medicine and housing materials were being rushed Saturday to tens
of thousands of people displaced by a typhoon that lashed the northern
Philippines, rescuers said.
The death toll from Typhoon Chan-hom, the second typhoon to hit the
country in a week, rose to 27 as more of the affected areas restored
downed power and communication lines.
At least 47 tonnes of rice were sent to the region around the cape of
Bolinao, where 12 people died as the typhoon wrecked homes and toppled
power lines, the civil defence office said in a statement.
Electricity was being slowly restored in the area, it added.
Relief goods were also being taken to the neighbouring province of
Zambales and to the mountain region around Kiangan town, where 12 people
were killed by landslides, it added.
One man died of a heart attack in the city of Olongapao as it was also
rocked by landslides.
Relief agencies reported two new deaths Saturday -- a woman drowned when
a boat capsized while crossing a river near Santa Fe town, while a four
year-old girl drowned in Balanga city west of Manila.
The typhoon blew out into the Philippine Sea off the northeast coast of
Luzon island early Friday after unleashing landslides, floods, and power
cuts across the north of the country.
It destroyed more than 7,000 houses and the strong winds and flooding
displaced more than 64,000 people, the government said.
Chan-hom hit just days after Typhoon Kujira wreaked havoc across a
swathe of the Philippines, leaving at least 27 people dead and 54,000
people homeless.
Around 20 typhoons hit the Philippines every year, some causing massive
death and destruction.