Hundreds Dead, Hundreds Missing After Typhoon Slams Philippines

"The death toll from a typhoon that ravaged the Philippines jumped to 238 Wednesday with hundreds missing, as rescuers battled to reach areas cut off by floods and mudslides," The Manila Times writes.

It adds that "Typhoon Pablo (international codename: Bopha) slammed into the southern island of Mindanao Tuesday, toppling trees and blowing away homes with 210-kilometre (130-mile) per hour gusts before easing overnight as it headed towards the South China Sea."

As often happens during disasters, as information comes in the details are changing — unfortunately, for the worse. The latest update from Philippines' National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council says there have been at least 274 deaths.

From Manila, The Wall Street Journal reports that "Philippine disaster authorities struggled Wednesday to cope with the devastation wrought by Typhoon Bopha. ... Rescue teams tried to reach isolated residents in places that the storm churned into a sea of mud, upended trees, toppled electrical poles and flattened buildings or tore off their roofs. Wide areas were without electricity for the second day. The government used trucks and boats to bring supplies of food, blankets, medicines and cadaver bags to stricken areas."

Copyright 2012 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.