Flooding forces thousands to evacuate

The Philippine government Tuesday used trucks and watercraft to evacuate nearly 2,000 people to safety from rising floodwaters in the Caraga region. Amado Posadas, operations chief for the regional disaster risk reduction management council, said evacuations were carried out in several provinces in the wake of continuous monsoon rains, the Philippine Inquirer Mindanao reported. Officials said Surigao in Surigao del Norte province was worst hit, with at least 1,144 people evacuated to higher ground. Officials also barred ships from sailing because of the rains. In Butuan, poor visibility forced several commercial flights to be canceled. In Surigao del Sur province, officials said Hinatuan and Barobo were hit by flash flooding. Heavy rains also swamped several areas of Agusan del Sur, including the communities of Bayugan, Bunawan and San Francisco. "We have ordered preventive evacuation as a measure to prevent destruction and threat to lives of residents," Posadas told the Inquirer. In Bunawan, Mayor Edwin Elorde said he had to close a portion of the national highway Monday because of rising floodwaters. "I would not risk lives by allowing them to use the highway, where the floods reached waist-deep," Elorde said. On Monday, officials said the death toll from Tropical Storm Washi in the southern Philippines rose to 1,249 from 1,100 as bodies that were swept to sea by flash floods began washing ashore. The storm moved through the southern Philippines Dec. 16-18, touching off landslides and flash floods that swept away whole villages.