Thursday, August 10, 2006

Bopha Leaves Trail Of Destruction In South RP Island

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Zamboanga Journal / 10 Aug) Tropical storm Bopha left a trail of destruction in the southern Philippine island of Tawi-Tawi, where rescuers were searching for a still undetermined number of people reported missing, officials said on Thursday.

Officials said some 1,000 houses built on stilts were destroyed by huge waves and strong winds that battered three villages in Tawi-Tawi the past two days.

“We are still searching for those who went missing. We are trying to find out how many people are missing, but some 1,000 houses were destroyed by the storm,” said Albert Que, the mayor of Bongao town.

He said most of the houses destroyed were built on stilts by fishermen. “Many people left homeless by the storm are now staying in mosques, schools and gyms and we need more provisions,” Que said.

Que said social workers distributed rice and noodles to evacuation centers. “We still don’t know the exact number of evacuees, but our concern now is to find the missing and feed all these people,” he said.

The Philippine weather bureau said Bopha was heading for Taiwan.

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