‘Pablo’ death toll tops 1000

Residents search for victims of Tuesday’s flash flood caused by Typhoon Bopha at New Bataan township, Compostela Valley in southern Philippines Thursday Dec. 6, 2012. The powerful typhoon that washed away emergency shelters, a military camp and possibly entire families in the southern Philippines has killed hundreds of people with nearly 400 missing, authorities said Thursday. AP/Bullit Marquez

MANILA, Philippines – The death toll from the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year has topped 1,000 and could still rise sharply, the government said on Sunday.

Typhoon “Pablo” (international name: Bopha) killed 1,020 people, mostly on the southern island of Mindanao, where floods and landslides caused major damage on December 4, civil defence chief Benito Ramos said.

A total of 844 people remain missing, about half of them fishermen who ventured out to sea before Bopha made landfall, Ramos said, adding he feared many of the missing were dead.