Philippines

Manila : The death toll due to typhoon Goni, this year's strongest storm to hit Philippines this year, has increased to 16 on Monday, a day after it made landfall in the the country's main Luzon island, according to the disaster management agency. The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) in Bicol, one of the hardest-hit southernmost regions of the main island of Luzon, said three other people were reported missing, reports Xinhua news agency. Goni was a "Super Typhoon" when it first made landfall at dawn on Sunday, packing maximum sustained winds of 225 km per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 310 km per hour. It weakened as it blew out of the country. Typhoon Goni triggered flash floods and mudslides in the Bicol region, and left a trail of destruction in 12 out of the 17 regions in the Philippines. Ricardo Jalad, Office of Civil Defense administrator, told the media that more than two million people from 12 regions have been affected by Goni. Goni struck close to the regions hit by typhoon Molave last week, which killed 22 people and destroyed infrastructure and crops. Meanwhile, the state weather bureau said it is also tracking Tropical Depression Atsani, which accelerated west-northwestward towards central Luzon. Typhoons and tropical storms regularly hit the Philippines from June through December, claiming hundreds of lives and cause billions of dollars in damages. Located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, the Philippines is among the most disaster-prone countries in the world, including active volcanoes, frequent earthquakes, and an average of 20 typhoons a year, causing floods and landslides.

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