‘Dante’ death toll now 10; 15 still missing in Bicol

MANILA, Philippines - The death toll from tropical storm "Dante" rose to 10 and may still increase as at least 15 others were reported missing as of Saturday night, the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) said. In its situation report at 6 p.m. Saturday, the NDCC said nine of the fatalities were from the Bico regionl while one was from Southern Luzon. Eight of the 10 were identified as: * Ricardo Cañones, 60, of Lucena City; * Jason Mercado of Exciban village in Labo, Camarines Norte; * Joel Mercedes of Camarines Norte; * Nanet Armada; of Hubo, Magallanes, Sorsogon; * Eleanor Balquin, of Hubo, Magallanes, Sorsogon; * Rodolfo delos Santos Jr., 44, of Hubo, Magallanes, Sorsogon; * Catrina delos Santos, 8, of Hubo, Magallanes, Sorsogon; and * Rens delos Santos, 5, of Hubo, Magallanes, Sorsogon At least 15 others were considered still missing after landslides hit Hubo in Magallanes, Sorsogon. On the other hand, at least 2,582 families or 13,244 people had been displaced due to floods and landslides. These included 500 families (2,500 people) from Southern Luzon and 2,082 families (10,744 people) from Bicol. The NDCC said that as of noon Saturday, at least 4,435 passengers, 45 small cars, 60 passenger buses, 16 motor bancas and 18 vessels were stranded in Pasacao, Tabaco, Camaligan, Pio Duran, Pilar, Bulan, Matnog, Babor, Sabang, Placer and Victory in Bicol; Looc and Dapdap in Eastern Visayas. At least nine areas have been flooded due to continuous rains in Sorsogon and Catanduanes, including Prieto Diaz, Gubat, Barcelona, Sta. Magdalena, Irosin, Magallanes, Casiguran and Sorsogon City in Sorsogon; and San Miguel in Catanduanes. Catanduanes Circumferential Road was flooded with landslides and rockslides, while Virac-Viga-Payo-Bagamanoc was rendered impassable anew due to landslides. Maharlika Highway in Barangka, Buenavista in Irosin was flooded but passable, while Cawayan Bridge in Guinlajon village was not passable due to flooding. - GMANews.TV