6 dead as floods hit Philippines disaster zone

Thousands of villagers leave their homes following a severe flooding that hit several areas in Davao City on Sunday. Six people have died and four others are missing in floods that swept through Mindanao still reeling from a deadly typhoon disaster, authorities said Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013. DENNIS JAY SANTOS/INQUIRER MINDANAO

MANILA, Philippines—Six people have died and four others are missing in floods that swept through a southern Philippine region still reeling from a deadly typhoon disaster, authorities said Wednesday.

Days of heavy rains on Mindanao island left the major city of Davao and nine nearby towns flooded, including areas that were devastated by Typhoon Bopha (Pablo) in early December, the civil defense office said.

Six people, including a year-old boy, had been confirmed killed between Monday and Wednesday, while four others were missing, it said in its latest tally.

About 125,000 people, half of them from Davao city, fled their inundated homes for state-run evacuation centers or friends’ houses, it added.

It said the total included more than 17,000 people from New Bataan and Cateel, two of the towns worst hit in last month’s typhoon disaster that left nearly 2,000 people dead or missing.

Authorities said the rain eased on Wednesday but large areas remained flooded.

The Philippines is hit by about 20 major storms or typhoons each year that occur mainly during the rainy season between June and October, though floods frequently also occur outside the cyclone season.