Philippines Floods : Death Toll Count Risen to 51

The death toll could rise further as rescuers continue to look for 19 people who are still missing more than a week after heavy rain pounded the central and southern regions over the Christmas weekend.
Officials said Monday that the death toll from recent floods and landslides in the disaster-prone Philippines has risen to 51, as authorities distributed food packs to the hardest-hit communities.
According to the national disaster agency, the number of fatalities could rise further as rescuers search for 19 people still missing more than a week after heavy rain pounded the central and southern regions over the Christmas weekend.
As the Catholic-majority nation of 110 million people prepared for a long Christmas holiday, bad weather struck. As a result of the heavy rains, over 270,000 people were forced to seek emergency shelter.