Twister destroys 152 homes, a mosque and school in North Cotabato

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North Cotabato Twister Destroys 150 Homes Along With A Mosque and School – Map Image by PhilStar – www.plnmedia.com

A twister wiped out three villages near the town of Pikit in North Cotabato on Thursday.

In all, 152 homes, a mosque and a school were destroyed in the incident. No casualties were reported but seven people were injured.

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Tahira Kalatongan of the Pikit municipal disaster risk reduction and management council, said victims were residents of Barangays Manaulanan, Punol and Pamalian that were hit by the twister at about 3pm.

Many of the homes destroyed were in an open field and many were constructed with lightweight materials.

Authorities said that many of the injured were hit by flying debris. Relief efforts have been extended to more than 100 families affected.

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Officials said that the most powerful twisters usually occured in the Maguindanao marshlands.

In nearby Pagalungan and Datu Montawal municipalities in Maguindanao, strong winds and heavy downpours toppled acacia and banana trees along portions of the Cotabato-Davao highway, causing traffic jam for over an hour.