Storm displaces 35,000 in the Philippines

Tropical storm 'Cosme' (international codename: Halong) left 12 people killed and 11 others injured. Most of the fatalities were hit by flying debris, the national disaster coordinating centre (NDCC) said.

The number of families affected by floods, landslides and storm surge in the Ilocos Region, the Cordillera Administrative Region, Central Luzon and Southern Luzon was placed at 34,810, of which, 1,555 were in evacuation centres, the NDCC said.

Zambales province, one of the worst hit by the storm, which made landfall in the northwest on Saturday (May 17) evening, was placed under a state of calamity.

The storm damaged 10 elementary and high school buildings in the towns of Bani, Binmaley, and Lingayen City in Calasiao Pangasinan province.

The NDCC has no immediate estimate on the cost of damage to private property. It reported that 3,038 houses were totally destroyed while 5,604 were partially damaged.

At 2pm, 'Cosme', which packs maximum sustained winds of 100 kilometres per hour with gusts of up to 130 kilometres per hour, was located 660 kilometres east northeast of Basco town, Batanes province, on its way to Okinawa, Japan, the state weather bureau said

By Joel Guinto
Asia News Network
20/05/08

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