Nine dead, 200,000 displaced by floods in Philippines
Posted: 14 January 2009 1403 hrs

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CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines: Nine people have died and nearly 200,000 have been displaced in flash floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains across the Philippines, relief agency officials said Wednesday.

Nine other people were missing, while two others have been injured, the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) said.

The tail-end of a cold front sweeping through the country's eastern seaboard had brought heavy rains across 11 provinces from northern Luzon to the eastern section of southern Mindanao island since last week, it said.

The agency said 37,889 families or about 191,586 people have been affected.

Parts of Misamis Occidental and Misamis Oriental provinces in the south remain submerged, while continuing heavy rains have forced a cancellation of air services by small domestic carriers.

Schools also remain closed, while in swollen rivers in Agusan del Norte province led to flooding. Storm surges were also reported in many coastal areas.

There were reports of landslides and flooding in the eastern Bicol region, while small motorised fishing vessels capsized near Capiz in the central Visayan region.

"What have I done wrong that this happened to my family," asked Edwin Sumahan, whose family was among hundreds evacuated from Isla Delta, a small island straddling the swollen Cagayan de Oro river.

Zenaida Emiliano meanwhile said her family had to flee to higher ground for the second time in a week due to the floods.

“We just returned home. We did not sleep last night due to incessant rains," she sighed as the rising water crept into her home.

- AFP/yb