652 Now Dead in Philippines Storm

Women, children make up majority of the dead
By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 18, 2011 9:18 AM CST
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
A resident carries items he retrieved from the debris Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011 in Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)

Tropical Storm Washi blew past the Philippines today, leaving heartbreak in its wake. The death toll now sits at 652—mostly women and children—with another 900 missing, according to the local Red Cross. Another 45,000 people have been displaced in the coastal cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan, reports the AP. "It's overwhelming. We didn't expect" so many dead, says the head of the country's disaster-response agency, adding that authorities are continuing to find bodies floating at sea.

He attributed the high casualties "partly to the complacency of people because they are not in the usual path of storms" despite warnings by officials that one was approaching. In just 12 hours, Washi dumped more than a month's worth of rain on Mindanao island; flash floods cascaded down mountain slopes and uprooted trees, swelling rivers. "I returned and saw that our house was completely gone," says a 21-year-old who lost her parents and seven other family members. "There was nothing but mud all over and knee-deep floodwaters." (More Philippines stories.)

652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
A resident walks past destroyed houses Sunday, Dec.18, 2011 at Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
A car rests on the concrete fence of a house Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011 at Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
Residents retrieve usable items from their destroyed houses Sunday, Dec.18, 2011 after a flash flooding in Cagayan De Oro city in southern Philippines.   (BULLIT MARQUEZ)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
A resident cooks her meal on a drier portion of her muddy house Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011 in Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
Residents take a break outside their destroyed house Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011 in Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
Remains of destroyed houses, toppled trucks and uprooted trees lie along a flood-hit area in Cagayan de Oro city, southern Philippines, Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011.   (Froilan Gallardo)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
Residents try to save their damaged vehicles Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011 at Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
A resident wades through a muddy portion of his front yard Sunday, Dec.18, 2011 in Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
Philippine police prepare to search for victims during retrieval operation Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011 in Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
Cristio Tingson, foreground, talks on his cell phone as workers use a backhoe to search for victims of his buried house Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011 at Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)
652 Now Dead in Wake of Philippines Tropical Storm Washi
Residents return to their homes to save some household items Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011 at Iligan city in southern Philippines.   (Bullit Marquez)