InterAksyon.com
The online news portal of TV5
Even as the storm exited the country, the death toll from tropical storm "Ofel" rose to 24 while thousands of Filipinos remained in evacuation centers.
In its 6 a.m. bulletin on Saturday, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said casualties were reported in Batangas, Romblon, Mindoro, Cotabato City and Cebu. Victims died from drowning, electrocution or being hit by a tree.
The NDRRMC said nine more persons remain missing, mostly fishermen, while 19 others were injured.
Of the close to 15,000 families affected by the storm, 3,382 families or 15,243 persons remain in evacuation centers, including in Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Zamboanga Peninsula and Eastern Visayas.
The storm also damaged more than P36 million-worth of infrastructure and farmlands in the Bicol and Mimaropa regions.
