The death toll from Severe Tropical Storm Bualoi climbed to 11 in the Philippines on Saturday, according to authorities, as the cyclone tracked westward toward Vietnam. Bualoi hammered small islands in the central Philippines on Friday, causing widespread destruction by uprooting trees and power pylons, ripping roofs off homes, triggering floods, and forcing 400,000 people to evacuate.
The small island of Biliran was among the worst-hit, where eight people died and two remain missing, provincial disaster official Noel Lungay told AFP. “There was widespread flooding and some roads remained under water early today,” he said, adding that “Evacuees are starting to return to their homes as the weather improves.”
The office of civil defence in Manila reported three additional deaths on the nearby islands of Masbate and Ticao, including two individuals who were crushed by a falling tree and a wall. The office confirmed that fourteen people are still missing across the central Philippines, with over 200,000 remaining inside emergency evacuation centers in the storm’s path.
Bualoi followed closely after Super Typhoon Ragasa, which previously claimed 14 lives across the northern Philippines. The state weather service reported that Bualoi was churning across the South China Sea at a typhoon strength of 120 kilometers (75 miles) an hour and is forecasted to be off the coast of central Vietnam by Sunday afternoon.
The Philippines is struck by an average of 20 storms and typhoons annually, routinely impacting vulnerable, poverty-stricken areas. Scientists warn that these storms are becoming more powerful globally as human-driven climate change causes the world to warm.
The storms arrive as the Philippine public is grappling with outrage over a scandal involving bogus flood-control projects that allegedly cost taxpayers billions of dollars. Thousands took to the streets on Sunday to protest the corruption, although the peaceful demonstrations were later marred by street battles where police vehicles were set ablaze and a precinct headquarters had its windows shattered.
