TAGUM CITY, Philippines -- The good news is that no civilian was caught in the crossfire as soldiers and communist rebels clashed for almost 12 hours in the boundary of Compostela Valley and Agusan del Sur on Friday.

The bad news is that hundreds of residents of Awao village in the border town of Monkayo town became the latest additions to Mindanao's growing number of internally displaced persons due to armed conflict.

Josephine Frasco, Compostela Valley social welfare officer, said the day-long firefight between the military and the New People's Army forced civilians to flee and leave behind their livelihoods.

"Yes there are IDPs (internally-displaced persons) now situated in Sitios Liwanag and Rizalian in San Jose. Wwe have no report yet as to their exact number," Frasco told the Inquirer.

She said families affected by the fighting have already received initial assistance, such as food packs, from local officials.

As of Saturday, the military said it still had no report of rebel casualties and that the government did not suffer any injury.

"Helicopter gunships were called in to provide air support to the troops on the ground," said Maj. Randolph Cabangbang, spokesperson of the military's Eastern Mindanao Command based in Davao City.

Cabangbang explained that the involvement of the helicopter gunships helped prevent government casualties.

Senior Supt. Ronald dela Rosa, Compostela Valley police director, said soldiers from the Army's 3rd Special Forces Battalion were conducting an operation when they encountered the rebels around 7 a.m.

The operation was conducted following an NPA raid on the police office of Sta. Josefa, Agusan del Sur, earlier this week. Sta. Josefa is only a few kilometers away from Monkayo.

The rebels, who overran the police station and escaped with several high-powered firearms, were said to operate in the boundary of the two provinces.

The NPA, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, has been waging a 40-year-old insurgency across the country in a bid to establish a Maoist government.