Landslides and floods are common in the Philippines, which is hit by about 20 typhoons each year.

Severe flooding in February 2008 affected hundreds of thousands of people in central and southern Philippines, killing at least 35 people.

Tens of thousands were forced into temporary shelters. Heavy rains inundated rice fields and washed away wooden bridges. Total damage to roads and bridges was put at 825.5 million pesos ($20 million).

This ReliefWeb map shows the affected areas as of Feb. 20.

The weather bureau has said the country may be hit by more typhoons this year due to the La Nina wet weather phenomenon, which could bring rains even during the summer months of April and May.

Environmental groups blame illegal logging for making flooding worse, particularly in the central Philippines, where more than 5,000 people died in 1991 in floods triggered by a typhoon.

In February 2006, about 1,000 people were buried alive when a mudslide from a barren mountain covered a farming village on a central island.