12 dead, 7 missing in RP flashfloods

12 dead, 7 missing in RP flashfloods

MANILA (AFP): At least 12 people have been killed by flashfloods and landslides that swept four southern Philippine provinces after a week of torrential rain, the Office of Civil Defense said on Monday.

About 183 villages in the provinces of Davao, Compostela Valley, Agusan del Sur and Surigao del Sur were flooded due to intermittent rains that began Jan. 23, it said.

Television footage showed the water reaching the rooftop in some areas.

More than 33,000 people have been evacuated to temporary shelters in the four affected provinces, where disaster officials headed by Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado visited Monday to extend relief assistance.