More than a dozen killed as Typhoon Kammuri exits Philippines

The death toll from Typhoon Kammuri that hit provinces south of the Philippine capital rose to 13, government authorities said on Wednesday, as the storm left the country.

Kammuri, the 20th to hit the country this year, crossed the coast on Monday night, forcing hundreds of thousands of residents to evacuate and the cancellation of hundreds of flights.

It also disrupted some events in the Southeast Asian Games, which the Philippines is hosting until December 11.

Five people died in the central Bicol region, including three who drowned, a local disaster agency said. One of the five victims was reportedly electrocuted.

Five more were killed in a region just south of Manila, including three people who were pinned down when the storm knocked down trees.

Three other people were killed in two provinces in the north and central Philippines, according to local news reports.

About 345,000 people are still in evacuation centres, awaiting authorities’ clearance for them to return home, disaster agency spokesman Mark Timbal told broadcaster ANC.

“The storm left the usual damage of major storms such as fallen trees, ruined roofs of houses and some government facilities,” Timbal said. Officials said forced evacuations and preparations prevented greater loss of life.

Sustained winds of Kammuri weakened to 100 kilometres per hour (67 miles per hour), with gusts of up to 125km/h (78 mph) as it headed towards the South China Sea.

The storm is set to leave the Philippines on Wednesday night, the state weather bureau said.

An average of 20 typhoons annually hit the Philippines, an archipelago of more than 7,000 islands.