By Glazyl M. Jopson
BACOLOD CITY — The death toll from Typhoon “Tino” rose to 20 in Canlaon City, Negros Oriental, with five people still missing as of Sunday, November 9.
Police Lt. Stephen Polinar, spokesperson for the Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office (NORPPO), said the latest fatality was a 14-year-old girl whose decomposing body was found Sunday morning in Isabela, Negros Occidental.
Most of the victims were swept away by flash floods during the typhoon’s peak on November 4, as boulders and mud flowed down from Kanlaon Volcano onto the roads.
Eleven of the fatalities were reported in Barangay Panubigan, three each in Barangays Mabigo and Malaiba, one each in Barangays Pula and Bayog, and another in an unidentified village.
Polinar said search and retrieval operations were suspended Sunday due to heavy rains brought by Super Typhoon “Uwan.”
He said the weather made it difficult for responders to continue recovery efforts.
“We’re continuously monitoring the situation for a possible escalation,” he said.
“But we’re hoping it won’t.”
He said retrieval operations will resume once conditions improve.
Canlaon City had earlier declared a state of calamity following the June 2024 eruption of Kanlaon Volcano and the latest damage from Typhoon “Tino.”
As of November 8, a total of 428 families or 1,384 individuals were sheltering in various evacuation centers across the city.
Polinar also confirmed one fatality in the town of Vallehermoso, Negros Oriental, due to the typhoon.
