'Cosme' ravages Zambales town; 7,000 families homeless

MANILA, Philippines - Tropical storm "Cosme" has ravaged Sta. Cruz town in Zambales province, leaving about 7,000 families in the area homeless, according to Governor Amor Deloso. In an interview with radio dzBB on Sunday, Deloso appealed for help for the residents of Sta. Cruz, after the storm wrecked an estimated 75 to 85 percent of the homes there. As of posting time, there were only about 500 people who were evacuated to safer places, according to Deloso. "Kagabi lang nag-evacuate kasi malalim ang tubig (We were able to evacuated them just last night because the water was deep)." Santa Cruz, a second class municipality, has a population of 49,269 people in 9,754 households, based on the 2000 census. - GMANews.TV