Typhoon Fengshen takes a toll in the Philippines
Updated
Information about the impact of typhoon Fengshen in southern and central Philippines is slowly begining to come in .
Reports from regional disaster coordinating offices say twelve people have been killed while 27 others are missing in provinces affected by the typhoon.
Regional officials say most of those killed in the onslaught of the typhoon were due to drowning and at least three of them were children.
In Cotabato City, at least two people were killed in a landslide.
A boat with seventeen passengers capsized in the southern Surigao province of whom 10 have been rescued and the other seven people are still reported missing.
Thousands of families have been evacuated to safer ground in the southern, central and northern Philippines since yesterday.
Floods and power outages have also been reported in many areas.
Relief goods have been flown from the capital Manila to the provinces affected by the typhoon.
President Gloria Arroyo is pushing through with her ten-day visit to the United States despite this, and has given instructions to disaster management officials.
The typhoon, with winds reaching up to 170 kilometers an hour, originated from the south and is moving northward.
