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Typhoon Phanfone death toll in Philippines rises to 41, thousands still stuck in shelters
- The powerful storm hit the Philippines on Christmas Eve, affecting over 1.6 million people
- Typhoon Phanfone, locally called Ursula, is the 21st cyclone to hit the storm-prone Philippines
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The number of deaths from a powerful storm that hit the Philippines over Christmas has climbed to 41, authorities said on Sunday, with tens of thousands still in evacuation centres.
Typhoon Phanfone made landfall on Christmas Eve, lashing several islands in the central Visayas, including popular tourist destinations, with destructive winds and heavy rain. It continued to batter the country on Christmas Day, causing floods and landslides, and left the country on Saturday. The extent of the damage continued to grow as assessments came in.
The death toll of 41 – up from 28 on Friday – included three boat crew who died after their vessel capsized due to strong winds, a policeman electrocuted by a toppled post, and a man struck by a felled tree.
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Twelve people were still unaccounted for, while 28 were injured.
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“We’re hoping that there will be no more fatalities,” said national disaster agency spokesman Mark Timbal.
The latest agency report showed over 1.6 million people were affected by the typhoon, which damaged over 260,000 houses and forced almost 100,000 people to flee to emergency shelters.
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