MANILA, Philippines — Chinese President Xi Jinping has expressed sympathies to President Rodrigo Duterte after Typhoon Ompong (international name Mangkhut) barreled into the country last Saturday.
The typhoon's strong winds and intense rain left infrastructure and agriculture damage across the country.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the number of people killed by "Ompong" has climbed to 74, according to the Philippine National Police.
"On behalf of the Chinese government and people, and in his own name, Xi mourned the victims and expressed sympathy to those injured, the bereaved families and the people in the affected area," the Chinese Embassy said in a statement.
"Xi said that China and the Philippines are friendly neighbors, and the Chinese people shared the sadness of the Philippine people over their sufferings, and are willing to help as much as possible," it added.
The typhoon pummeled into southern China after devastating the Philippines, where it caused landslides and building collapses.
According to the Hong Kong Observatory, Mangkhut was the most powerful cyclone to hit the country since 1979 with maximum gusts of up to 195 kilometers per hour.
The typhoon has weakened to a tropical storm as it moves deeper into southern China affecting the provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi and Hainan.
Most of the fatalities in the Philippines came from the Cordillera Administrative Region, the police said. About 55 people remain missing while 74 were wounded.
Retrieval and rescue operations are continuing for small-scale miners and their families who might have been buried in the 300-meter landslide in Itogon, Benguet.
Most of the dead were retrieved from a bunkhouse used by former Benguet Corp., which was located outside the mining tunnel below the mountain slopes.
Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu ordered the suspension of small-scale mining in the region following a typhoon-induced landslide that left dozens of people dead. — Patricia Lourdes Viray with reports from Associated Press