Philippine storm blows away after leaving 20 dead

Rain dumped by Typhoon Koppu in the mountains may flood rivers

Cabanatuan, Philippines

: A storm has finally blown away from the main northern Philippine island after it left at least 20 dead over the weekend and forced 70,000 villagers in to emergency shelters and destroyed rice farms ready for harvest.

Disaster-response agencies said on Tuesday that there was still a danger that rain dumped by Typhoon Koppu in the mountains may flood rivers and put hundreds of villages at risk.

Koppu was a typhoon when it blew ashore on Sunday, but by Tuesday it was a storm and was blowing over the Luzon Strait with winds of 85 kilometers (53 miles) per hour.

Brief spells of sun in flood-hit northern provinces allowed villagers to start shoveling away thick mud that had covered homes and farmlands in the country's main rice- and vegetable-growing region.