US troops aid Philippine rescue

Several towns are virtually cut off from rescue teams on the ground

US troops are helping rescuers get food aid to the northern Philippine region cut off by recent floods and landslides that have killed about 600 people.

As roads and bridges have been washed away in the mountainous provinces, most aid is being dropped by helicopters.

About 700 US troops who were in the region for military exercises have been brought in to aid the relief effort.

Rescuers found only bodies on Saturday, after two typhoons in as many weeks left entire villages buried in mud.

There is a significant number of people affected. Our problem is getting to them Esperanza Cabral Social Welfare Secretary

"Dozens of people are still missing," said Lt Col Ernesto Torres, spokesman for the national disaster agency, adding that rescuers were using shovels and bare hands to avoid another landslide.

"As of now, food and relief materials can only be delivered by helicopters because it would take two to five days to clear up roads and bridges washed out by floods and landslides," he told Reuters news agency.

Submerged

A US military spokesman said four US helicopters were due to airlift 10 tonnes of food to Baguio, a central mountain resort that has been virtually cut off by deadly landslides triggered by Typhoon Parma on Thursday and Friday.

Some 300,000 people are sheltering in evacuation camps

In the northern province of Pangasinan, several towns have remained under water for the past three days.

"There is a significant number of people affected," Social Welfare Secretary Esperanza Cabral told AFP. "Our problem is getting to them."

There have given varying reports of casualties. Police in Baguio and the surrounding region said the death toll there alone climbed to 275 as more bodies were dug up on Sunday.

But the National Disaster Coordinating Council in Manila put the official toll at 193 from Parma, which finally blew out into the South China Sea late on Friday.

Overall, the death toll from Parma and Tropical Storm Ketsana, which killed 337 in Manila and surrounding areas, now stands at around 600, with fears the figure could rise.

The storms have affected over six million people, with more than 300,000 still taking shelter in evacuation camps.