Manila, Aug. 26 -- The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) on Wednesday said the number of persons affected by recent tropical cyclones and the southwest monsoon (habagat) has climbed to 7.7 million, and the agency is validating reports about 31 fatalities.

In a message to reporters, OCD information officer Diego Mariano said the affected individuals belong to around 2.2 million families in the Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol Region, Western Visayas, Zamboanga Peninsula, Cordillera, and the National Capital Region.

Around 346 evacuation centers are sheltering 8,446 families, equivalent to 28,910 individuals.

The cost of assistance totalled about PHP1.42 billion to date, Mariano said.

Deaths being v...