Typhoon Ruby kills 21 in Eastern Samar – Philippine Red Cross

Published December 8, 2014 2:50pm

(Updated 3:42 p.m.) At least 21 people were reported dead, many of them drowned as flood waters rose in Borongan, the main town in Eastern Samar, where Typhoon Ruby (Hagupit) made first landfall, the Philippine National Red Cross said on Monday.

The Philippines had evacuated more than a million people as the powerful typhoon approached the country from the Pacific, fearing a repeat of a super storm last year that left more than 7,000 dead or missing.

"We have confirmed reports that 21 people died in Eastern Samar, 16 of them in Borongan," said Gwendolyn Pang, secretary-general of the Philippine National Red Cross.

Pang confirmed the figures with GMA News Online, but clarified that not all fatalities were from Eastern Samar.

“The breakdown we have is one from Western Samar, one from Northern Samar, three from Iloilo and 16 from Eastern Samar, specifically from Borongan. We have people on the ground, we received this from our local Red Cross chapters,” Pang said.

When sought for comment on the number of fatalities, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council chief Alexander Pama said the NDRRMC has no record of those numbers yet.

“Red Cross representatives here in the NDRRMC Operation Center deny that such info came from the Red Cross,” Pama said in a text message.

The NDRRMC has so far confirmed only two dead and three injured. Two others were reported killed outside Samar, the third largest island in the Philippines, since Ruby hit on Saturday night. — Reuters with Patricia Denise Chiu/RSJ, GMA News

Tags: hagupit, ruby, philippineredcross, weather