In this handout photo released by the Philippine Coast Guard, shown are houses buried in mudslides in Albay province, eastern Philippines on Friday Dec. 1, 2006. The death toll from mudslides that swept eastern hamlets on the slopes of the Mayon volcano has risen to 208 with 261 others missing, two days after Typhoon Durian ravaged the region, Philippine officials said Saturday Dec. 2. (AP Photo/Philippine Coast Guard, SN1 George de Jesus, HO)

Grim hunt for hundreds killed in Philippine typhoon

DARAGA, Philippines, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Distraught survivors searched piles of bodies for the faces of their loved ones in the central Philippines on Saturday after landslides triggered by Typhoon Durian left hundreds dead.

Durian moved into the South China Sea on Friday after affecting 800,000 people in the Philippines and was expected to weaken into a tropical storm before hitting Vietnam on Monday.

Villages were engulfed on Thursday around Mount Mayon, an active volcano about 320 km (200 miles) south of Manila, when driving rain and winds of up to 225 kph (140 mph) dislodged tonnes of mud and boulders from the slopes.

The governor of Albay province, the worst-hit area, said a wall of water 6 feet (1.8 metres) high crashed down the volcano.

"We lost everything," Fernando Gonzales told Reuters, adding 100 people had been killed by the torrent.

The national disaster agency said a total of 303 people had died in eastern provinces, 285 in Albay alone. At least 293 people were missing.

The toll was rising sharply as rescue workers, some using their bare hands, pulled corpses and body parts from the mud.

"Right now we are on retrieval operations. We do not believe there are any survivors," Cedric Daep, head of the provincial disaster coordinating council, told Reuters.

Army commanders asked for dog teams to help with the grim search and sacks of lime to mask the stench of death. With roads blocked, soldiers hiked for hours to get to the disaster area.

"The scene wrenched my heart," Colonel Robert Morales said on radio. "I could see bodies of women and children all over."

Thousands of survivors crammed into schools and churches as disaster agencies called for fresh water, food and medicine.

Pope Benedict offered prayers for the mainly Roman Catholic country. Canada said it was giving C$1 million ($873,000) to the relief effort and Japan pledged $173,000.

PILES OF CORPSES

Nearly 45,000 people were left homeless and entire communities isolated after power lines and phone links were knocked out and bridges washed away. Livelihoods were lost as fruit trees were uprooted and rice paddies destroyed.

In the town of Daraga, bordering Mount Mayon, more than 50 bodies were stacked in front of an overflowing funeral parlour. The undertaker estimated there were around 150 corpses in all.

Photographs of the missing lined the town square. Men and women, many clutching handkerchiefs over their faces, searched for relatives among the dead.

"My siblings, my mother, they are gone. My niece is dead and at the plaza there are so many dead people," one woman sobbed.

Villagers around Mayon thought they had escaped catastrophe in September when the volcano subsided after months of spewing lava and rocks, raising fears of a major eruption and forcing thousands of residents to evacuate.

The debris left behind proved deadly when Durian struck.

"I was swept to sea. Big rocks were hitting me," Ramon Valderama, who lost his wife and son in the chaos, said on radio. "I could only cry because I was helpless."

Named after a pungent Asian fruit, Durian was the fourth typhoon to hit the Philippines in three months. Forecasters expect one more before the end of the year.

In September, 213 people were killed when Typhoon Xangsane battered the north and centre of the country, leaving millions without electricity or running water for days.

Xangsane also killed dozens in Vietnam.

120 fires rip through Victoria

Victorians are bracing for one of the worst summers of fires, as about 120 blazes ripped through bushland across the state.

The Department of Sustainability and Environment's resources were already stretched on the second day of summer as about 450 firefighters battled the fires, particularly strong in Victoria's high country.

Most of the fires started from lightning strikes in Victoria's high country in Gippsland and the state's north-east.

DSE spokesman Peter Billing said by this evening, 50 fires were out of control, 55 under control and 13 contained.

"There are eight fires that we are having difficulty with," Mr Billing said.

"There are three fires near Heyfield in high country, two in the Upper Goulburn Valley and three in the Ovens district. Our worst fire is at Mt Terrible, which has burned 136 hectares in thick forest that is inaccessible."

Mr Billing said 26 aircraft were tackling the fires in all districts, as pilots and crews worked around the clock to contain them before fire-fanning weather arrived on Tuesday.

"We've got everything we can in use at the moment in a sustained operation," Mr Billing said.

Asked whether the fire situation was a crisis, Mr Billing said: "It's a sustained firefighting operation at a high level of activity."

The DSE is gravely concerned about weather forecasted for Tuesday, which is expected to be hot, dry and windy.

"We're aware the weather conditions will deteriorate on Tuesday," Mr Billing said.

"There will be a maximum effort to get these fires pinned down by Tuesday morning."

Campers and day trippers have been told to leave the Upper Goulburn Valley as the bushfires move closer to populated areas.

Department of Sustainability and Environment spokesman Darren Skelton said Mt Terrible posed the greatest threat, just five km south-east of the town of Kevington.

Another fire was burning six km east of the town of Whitfield this evening.

Both fires were moving towards private property.

The Mansfield Shire Council has nominated the Jamieson Hall and the Mansfield Sport and Recreation Centre as evacuation points.

Police said anyone camping or entering the Upper Goulburn valley area between Jamieson and Knockwood should leave.

Motorists are advised to avoid using the Jamieson-Woods Point Road as firefighters bring in heavy equipment.

Travellers already in fire-affected areas were advised to listen to ABC and local radio, ensure family and friends know their whereabouts and are aware of increased traffic on roads and tracks.

Incident management centres have been set up at Mansfield, Ovens, Wangaratta and Benalla to help manage the fires.