Death toll climbs to 163 in Malaysian storm

Death toll climbs to 163 in Malaysian storm

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): The death toll rose to 163 yesterday from a tropical storm that struck the west coast of Malaysia's Sabah state last week, the country's worst natural disaster, officials said.

Rescue workers, who were searching for the fifth day for up to 200 still reported missing, earlier yesterday recovered two bodies.

Search-and-rescue operations would continue until everyone reported missing is found, said Mohamed Rahmat, the national natural disaster relief chairman.

That could take a long time as bodies were covered by mud or swept away by river currents, Mohamed was reported as saying by Bernama news agency.

"There had been cases of search teams recovering bodies about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the scene of the incident," said Mohamed.

The timber-town of Keningau, 130 kilometers (81 miles) southwest of Kota Kinabalu, bore the brunt of tropical storm Greg's fury last Thursday.

A total of 17,000 people from 3,825 homes in 226 villages on Sabah's west coast were affected by the storm. Three thousand victims are housed at 11 evacuation centers, an official said.

Seventy-two Indonesian immigrants were buried Sunday in a mass grave about 10 kilometers from Keningau, news reports said.

Health authorities are bracing for an outbreak of water-borne diseases such as cholera, typhoid and diarrhea after the water supply was damaged in the storm.

Sabah Chief Minister Yong Teck Lee has also made a nation-wide appeal for funds to help the survivors.

"We can cope in terms of providing immediate relief such as food and clothing but the cost of rebuilding the destroyed homes... will run into millions of ringgit (dollars)," Yong was reported saying by The Star.