At Least 58 People Died As A Result Of Topan Kalmaegi In The Philippines

Illustration. (Wikimedia Commons/Sascha Wittkowski)

JAKARTA - At least 58 people died after Typhoon Kalmaegi left a trail of destruction in the central Philippines and continued to hit parts of Palawan Island on Wednesday while moving towards the South China Sea.

Among the dead were six military personnel whose helicopter crashed in Agusan del Sur on Mindanao Island while carrying out humanitarian missions.

The view of the destruction was seen in Cebu Province, a major tourist center, when the flood receded, showing destroyed houses, overturned vehicles, and scattered debris.

Badan penanggulangan bencana melaporkan 13 orang hilang, dikutip dari Reuters 5 November.

The destruction of Kalmaegi, locally known as Tino, came more than a month after an earthquake measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale hit northern Cebu, killing dozens of people and displaced thousands of people.

Kalmaegi, which weakened after reaching the mainland Tuesday morning, is expected to strengthen again over the South China Sea, according to a recent report from the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (PAGASA).

More than 200,000 people were evacuated throughout the Visayas region, including parts of the southern region of Luzon and northern Mindanao, ahead of the storm that submerged houses and caused heavy flooding and power outages.

With wind speeds of 120 km/hour and gusts of up to 165 km/h, Kalmaegi, the 20th storm that hit the Philippines this year, is heading to Vietnam where preparations are underway ahead of its landing which is expected on Friday.

In September, Typhoon Super Ragasa hit northern Luzon, forcing schools and government offices to be closed due to strong winds and heavy rains.