A typhoon in
the central Philippines on Christmas Day has killed at least 21 people and
caused damage to homes and tourist areas.
Typhoon
Phanfone, known locally as Typhoon Ursula, first made landfall on Eastern Samar
province on Tuesday, bringing heavy rain and storm surges. It hit as the
equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane, packing sustained wind speeds of 150
kilometers (93 miles) per hour, with gusts of 195 kilometers (121 miles) per
hour.
Phanfone
continued to sweep West across the islands of the Eastern Visayas region,
southern Luzon and Western Visayas on Wednesday, toppling electricity pylons
and trees, tearing off roofs, damaging homes and causing widespread travel
disruption over the busy Christmas period.
The region
is majority Catholic and many people were preparing for family celebrations
when the typhoon hit.
Images from
the area showed debris blocking roads, downed lamp posts, crumpled houses and
people huddling in evacuation centers.
On Thursday,
the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported that 13
people had died in the Western Visayas region, while the Office of Civil Defense
said eight had died in Eastern Visayas.
Two of the
victims were electrocuted and one was hit by a falling mango tree, officials
said.
Five
fishermen from Samar Island are also missing.
The full
extent of the damage is yet to be determined as power and communications in
several areas remain cut off.
Some tourist
areas, including the popular resort island of Boracay, were also damaged on
Wednesday. The nearby Kalibo International Airport was temporarily closed and
flights canceled after the typhoon damaged the roof of the terminal building,
according to an advisory from Philippine Airlines.