Philippines Floods: British Man Dead In Mindanao

British Man Killed By Philippines Flood

A British man has died in the flash floods that have ravaged the southern Philippines, the Foreign Office said.

The Briton is among hundreds of victims who lost their lives in the wake of a tropical storm that devastated swathes of communities on the southern island of Mindanao on Friday night.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "We have become aware of the death of a British national in Mindanao in the Philippines. We stand ready to provide consular assistance to the family at this difficult time."

The disaster struck when the island had 12 hours of sustained rainfall, causing landslides, prompting rivers to burst their banks and sending walls of water crashing down mountain slopes into homes.

About 143,000 people were affected in 13 southern and central provinces, including 45,000 who fled to evacuation centres.

Many people remain missing and about 7,000 houses were swept away, destroyed or damaged.

Funeral companies have been overwhelmed by the number of dead in what was one of the worst calamities to strike the region in decades.

Meanwhile charities are appealing to the British public to help, with Christian Aid and Save the Children among the aid organisations urging people to donate to the relief effort.

Christian Aid, which has already allocated £50,000, said it would distribute emergency supplies to nearly a thousand families in the Cagayan de Oro port area, including rice, mineral water, canned goods and cooking oil plus mats, blankets, mosquito nets and cooking utensils.

Alwynn Javier, who is co-ordinating the charity's response from Manila, said: "Christian Aid has worked with local partners in this area before and they are well placed to identify the most vulnerable members of the affected communities so they can be targeted first for emergency assistance."