Philippine floods kill 35, survivors rebuild homes
MANILA, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Residents in central and southern Philippine were rebuilding houses as floods subsided after two weeks of heavy rains that killed 35 people and left 10 missing, officials said on Wednesday.
"We're returning to normal," said Ben Evardone, governor of Eastern Samar, one of four areas declared under a state of calamity.
Hundreds of thousands of people were returning to their dwellings, although in some parts of the province houses were still submerged in flood waters, officials said.
A majority of the deaths were due to drowning, but at least 11 people were killed by landslides which environmental groups have blamed on illegal logging.
Total damage to roads and bridges in three flood-hit southern regions was put at 825.5 million pesos ($20 million) while 263 million pesos worth of agricultural crops, mostly rice and corn, were destroyed.
The Philippines is lashed by an average of about 20 typhoons a year, with landslides and floods common across the archipelago.
The weather bureau has said the country may be hit by more typhoons this year due to the La Nina wet weather phenomenon which could bring rains even during the summer months of April and May.
($1 = 40.4 pesos)
(Reporting by Rosemarie Francisco; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani) ((rosemarie.francisco@reuters.com; Reuters Messaging: rosemarie.francisco.reuters.com@reuters.net; +63 2 841-8937))
