'Missing' TV news reporter safe, back in Tacloban

A television news reporter who went missing at the height of Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) last Friday turned out to be safe and has returned to Tacloban City.

David Yu Santos of Solar TV News and his crew rode a motorcycle all the way from Guiuan in Eastern Samar to Tacloban City, Solar News anchor Pia Pagkalinawan said.

"In this sea of tragic news, there is always a blessing. Our @solartvnews reporter @davidyusantos is safe and back in Tacloban," Pagkalinawan said on her Twitter account Sunday.

She added Santos and his crew took a motorcycle "all the way from Guiuan to Tacloban."

"Horrible scenes all along the way," she said.

The website DistancesFrom.com said Guiuan is about 144 km from Tacloban.

Santos and his crew could not be contacted since Friday, when Yolanda slammed into Guiuan for the first of six landfalls in the Philippines.

Yolanda exited the Philippines Saturday but left a swath of destruction in its wake.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council as of Sunday morning confirmed 151 dead but the death toll is feared to go further up as more reports come in. — LBG, GMA News