Dec 19, 2021: At least 75 people have been killed after what has been recorded as the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year, official figures said Sunday, as efforts to deliver water and food to the devastated islands intensified.

More than 300,000 people fled their homes and beach resorts as Typhoon Roy wreaked havoc in the southern and central parts of the peninsula. The storm knocked out communications and electricity in many areas, tore down roofs, knocked down concrete electricity poles and flooded villages.

Governor of Philipinne island Bohol said on his official Facebook page that mayors on the devastated island had reported 49 deaths in their towns.

That took the overall number of reported deaths to 75, as per official figures. An aerial survey of damage to the island’s north made it “very clear that our people have suffered greatly in terms of destroyed homes and agricultural losses,” the governor added.

Thousands of troops, police, coast guards and firefighters are being deployed to help search and rescue efforts in the worst-affected areas of the vast island. Heavy machinery – such as backhoes and front-end loaders – is also being sent to help clear roads from fallen power poles and trees. Charities and emergency services have appealed for donations.

Bohol governor said a Philippine navy ship carrying supplies and other relief supplies would leave for Bohol on Monday, when it first declared a state of emergency on the island.

In addition to Bohol, There has also been widespread destruction on Siargao, Dinagat and Mindanao islands, which bore the brunt of Rai when it slammed into the Philippines.

The damage to the island’s landscape is reminiscent of the damage caused by Super Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, “if not worse,” Dinagat Governor Arlene Bag-ao said on Saturday. Haiyan, also known as Yolanda in the Philippines, was the deadliest hurricane on record in the country, killing or missing more than 7,300 people. In the town of Sri Gao, on the northern edge of Mindanao, shattered windows, broken glass, corrugated iron roof sheets, power lines and other debris littered the streets.

Rai’s wind speed dropped to 150kmph as it rained down torrential rains across the country, uprooting trees and destroying timber structures.

Scientists have long warned that typhoons are becoming more powerful and strengthening more rapidly as the world becomes warmer because of human-driven climate change.

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