Cebu: At least 58 people were dead after Typhoon Kalmaegi left a trail of destruction in the central Philippines and continued to batter parts of Palawan island on Wednesday as it headed toward the South China Sea.
Among the fatalities were six military personnel whose helicopter crashed in Agusan del Sur on the island of Mindanao during a humanitarian mission.
Scenes of devastation emerged in the province of Cebu, a major tourist hub, as floodwaters receded, revealing destroyed homes, overturned vehicles, and widespread debris. The disaster agency reported 13 people missing.
The devastation from Kalmaegi, locally named Tino, comes just over a month after a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck northern Cebu, killing dozens and displacing thousands.
Kalmaegi, which has weakened after making landfall early Tuesday, is forecast to regain strength while over the South China Sea, state weather PAGASA said in its latest bulletin.
More than 200,000 people were evacuated across the Visayas region, including parts of southern Luzon and northern Mindanao, ahead of a storm that submerged homes and caused widespread flooding and power outages.
Packing winds of 120 kph and gusts of up to 165 kph, Kalmaegi, the 20th storm to hit the Philippines this year, is heading towards Vietnam where preparations are underway ahead of its expected landfall on Friday.
In September, Super Typhoon Ragasa swept across northern Luzon, forcing schools and government offices to shut down as it brought fierce winds and torrential rain.
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