Search is on for missing in Philippine floods that kill more than 400

MANILA, Philippines - Rescuers on Sunday struggled to search for hundreds of missing in floods that devastated two southern Philippine cities and nearby areas, killing more than 400 people and sweeping entire villages into the sea.

Soldiers, coast guard teams, local rescuers and volunteers searched villages in the southern cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan for survivors of the floods triggered by Tropical Storm Washi.

"It's overwhelming," said Benito Ramos, administrator of the Office of Civil Defense. "There are so many missing. Many were swept to the sea and some of the bodies probably sank and will take days to float. It will take some time to complete this task."

Ramos expressed hope that more survivors could be found.

"We assume that the missing are alive, that's why the rescuers are there," he said, but admitted that in many villages, "there is no sign of life."

Washi slammed into the southern Philippines Friday, dumping torrential rains that caused rivers to overflow. The floods hit overnight as residents were sleeping. Rushing waters washed away people, some in their beds, houses and vehicles.

One woman told a local radio station in Cagayan de Oro City that she and several other people desperately clung to a floating tire in darkness as the floods tore through homes and swept them 32 kilometers (about 20 miles) away to a beach shore.

"It was my worst nightmare," she said.

Dead bodies lined some streets of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan, where 396 people were killed, according to the OCD and the Philippine National Red Cross.

Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Vicente Emano said the disposition of the cadavers was becoming a problem in his municipality.

"The funeral parlors are refusing to accept more bodies because there are just too many," he told a Manila radio station. "There are just so many dead."

Emano complained that they were not warned about Washi's threat.

"No one told us that this is what we can expect from the storm."

Ramos said advance warning was given to areas threatened by Washi. He said some residents were complacent because their region is not usually battered by cyclones.

He said he was willing to resign if asked to step down.

"There is no one to blame except me, I assume full responsibility," he said. "It appears we failed to educate people -especially those in low-lying areas - that they should evacuate when there is such a threat."

Washi also caused floods in the southern province of Bukidnon, killing 47 people, according to Red Cross. In the central island of Negros, 27 people drowned, the OCD said, while five died in landslides in the southern province of Compostella Valley.

Thirteen people were also killed in floods in the southern provinces of Zamboanga del Norte, Surigao del Sur and Lanao del Norte, the Red Cross said.

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