THE DEATH TOLL from the powerful typhoon that hit the Philippines yesterday has risen to 20.

The BBC reports that Typhoon Nesat is now on its way to China and will reach Hainan Island tomorrow evening or early Friday.

In the Philippines, the clean-up operations have started with emergency services and residents working to restore electricity and resume normal life in the capital Manila.

On Tuesday, the mighty storm slammed Manila and the main island of Luzon, unleashing floodwaters and fierce winds of up to 150km/h. According to the BBC, most deaths occurred in and around the capital.

Another 35 people are unaccounted for, said the Philippine disaster agency. About 108 people were rescued from the floodwaters as residents and local authorities responded quickly – forcing evacuations of low-lying areas and setting up temporary shelters in safer grounds.

Clean-up

Electricity is gradually being restored in the centre of the city and the Metro services have also resumed today.

Large areas of the city are now covered with fallen bamboo, litter and other debris, while other parts are still flooded, which is slowing down the clean-up and rescue operations.

Mayor Santiago Austria of Jaen, a rice-farming town of 63,000 people in northern Nueva Ecija province, pleaded for boats to rescue villagers from their swamped communities and bring them to evacuation centres. Sporadic rains continue to pound his town, he said.

On Monday, Manila held two-year commemorations for the nearly 500 people killed during a 2009 cyclone. Some residents acted more quickly this time to evacuate homes as waters rose. People escaped the swelling river by flocking to schools and other temporary evacuation sites.