Manila, Sep. 24 (IANS): The death toll in two major landslides that struck the Philippines after super typhoon Mangkhut barreled the island nation last week has climbed to 95, authorities said.
As of Sunday night, officials said a total of 49 bodies have been pulled out the mining town of Itogon's rubble in the north, Xinhau news agency reported.
The rescue workers had also pulled out another 46 bodies from the landslide site at the foot of a quarrying site in Naga City.
In Itogon, a disaster official said at least 19 others were still missing after mud and boulders crashed on a bunkhouse where miners and their families sought refuge as Mangkhut hit Luzon Island on September 15.
Rescuers were trying to locate 40 others still missing in the Naga City landslide that buried some 30 houses.
Disaster officials counted nearly 200 deaths in typhoon Mangkhut and the twin landslides that struck the Philippines last week.
Nearly 1.6 million farmers and fisherfolks were affected by Mangkhut, the strongest typhoon to hit not only the Philippines but the region this year.
