In this photo provided by Greenpeace, cars pass by a toppled electrical post due to Typhoon Rai in Surigao city, Surigao del Norte, southern Philippines, on Dec. 19, 2021. (Jilson Tiu/Greenpeace via AP)

       MANILA (Kyodo) -- The death toll from Typhoon Rai in the central and southern Philippines has risen to 405, with 82 others still missing and 1,147 injured, two weeks after the onslaught of the typhoon, the national disaster agency said Friday.

       Some 500,000 people affected by the super typhoon remain in evacuation shelters, the agency said, amid growing concern that recovery will take years in the areas hit by landslides and flooding.

       The typhoon damaged around 530,000 homes in the country, including some 170,000 destroyed, according to the agency.

       UNICEF Philippines said some 846,000 children in the affected areas need help as their homes were destroyed, adding the Omicron variant of the coronavirus and continued heavy rainfall can pose an additional danger and slow down aid efforts.

       Many children are suffering from diarrhea due to poor hygiene, the group also said.

       One of the deadliest storms to hit the Philippines in recent years, Typhoon Rai crossed the country from Dec. 16 to 17.

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