Storm Vamco hits Vietnam as Philippine death toll rises to 67

12 still missing; nearly 26,000 houses damaged by Typhoon Vamco; Duterte visits typhoon-hit Cagayan province; illegal logging, mining also blamed for floods

- Manolo B. Jara

MANILA

Storm Vamco barrelled into Vietnam on Sunday, damaging buildings and injuring at least five people, as the death toll in the Philippines climbed to 67.

The storm made landfall on Sunday morning with reported winds of up to 90 kilometers per hour, uprooting trees and blowing the roofs off houses and schools.

President Rodrigo Duterte flew to Tuguegarao province to assess the situation in the Cagayan Valley region, which was heavily flooded after Typhoon Vamco dumped rain over swathes of the main Luzon island, including the capital, metropolitan Manila.

Twenty-two fatalities were recorded in Cagayan, 17 in southern Luzon, eight in Metro Manila, and 20 in two other regions said Mark Timbal, the disaster management agency spokesman.

Twelve people were still missing and nearly 26,000 houses were damaged by Vanco, he said.

“This is the worst flooding that we had in the last 45 years,” Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba said during a briefing with Duterte. “We see that it is worsening every year.”