The president of the Philippines, Benigno Aquino, has declared a state of national calamity after flash floods and landslides caused by a typhoon swept through a southern region last weekend, killing about 1,000 people and leaving tens of thousands homeless.
Nine hundred and 57 people were killed and 49 still missing, according to the national disaster agency, with most of the casualties in the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan in the Mindanao region.
Aquino held meetings with officials in the two cities worst hit by water, mud and logs that swept down mountains as residents in riverside and coastal villages slept in the early hours of Saturday.
"First priority is to relocate to areas that no longer pose a danger to them," Aquino said at a meeting with officials in Cagayan de Oro, as he vowed action to prevent another tragedy of the same magnitude.
The disaster agency said more than 338,000 people in 13 provinces were affected by the disaster, with nearly 43,000 still in evacuation centres.
Read more: Guardian
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