THE death toll from Tropical Depression Usman has continued to increase, reaching 85 as of 6 a.m. Wednesday, January 2, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).
In its situation report Wednesday, the disaster council said 40 individuals were injured while 20 remained missing.
The number of casualties, however, is still subject to validation.
Search and retrieval operations were still ongoing Wednesday, based on social media posts by the Coast Guard in Bicol region.
"Usman", which has weakened to a low pressure area as it exited the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Monday, December 31, dumped heavy rains that caused floods and landslides in the Bicol, Mimaropa (Misamis, Marinduqe, Romblon and Palawan) and Eastern Visayas region.
The NDRRMC report said 208 areas were flooded. As of early Wednesday morning, floodwaters in 125 areas have subsided. The rest remained inundated.
A total of 45,348 families or 191,597 individuals were affected. Of the total, 6,637 families or 24,894 persons were still in evacuation centers.
Some 95 road sections and three bridges were affected. As of Wednesday morning, 57 road sections and one bridge were already passable.
Damage to crops reached P342.23 million. (VoxPop Philippines)