Lagatar24 Desk
Manila, Dec 20: The death toll from the strongest typhoon rai, which made landfall in the Philippines last week, has gone up to 208, the national police said on Monday.
At least 50 people are still missing. Most of the fatalities have been reported in the Central Visayas region with 129 deaths, followed by Western Visayas with 22 deaths, The Manila Bulletin said.
More than 300,000 people fled their homes and beachfront resorts as Rai slammed into the country on Thursday as a super typhoon. The Philippine Red Cross has reported “complete carnage” in coastal areas.
The typhoon packed sustained winds of 195 kilometers (121 miles) per hour and gusts of up to 270 kph (168 mph) before it blew out Friday into the South China Sea.
More than 180,800 people are still displaced and power outages have been reported in over 3,000 different areas in the Philippines, making it one of the deadliest storms to hit the country in recent years.
“More than 332,000 people had to be evacuated after Rai hit the Philippines on December 16. NDRRMC has reported 31 fatalities but only four of them were confirmed to be typhoon-related,” said the country’s National Disaster Risk reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).
