Toll from Typhoon Ketsana climbs

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The death toll from Typhoon Ketsana in Vietnam has risen to at least 85, a relief official has said.

The official from the national flood and storm control committee said 24 of the deaths occurred in the mountainous inland province of Kon Tum.

There were also 16 people missing and 124 injured, across the central region.

The powerful typhoon that fatally hit the Philippines and Vietnam is now weakening over Cambodia, where several people died and hundreds lost homes.

In Vietnam, the official from the national flood and storm control committee said 24 of the deaths occurred in the mountainous inland province of Kon Tum.

Across the central region there were 16 people missing and 124 injured, the official said.

Strongest storm

The victims in Kon Tum had mostly died in landslides, when their houses collapsed after being rattled by the storm, or by drowning in floodwaters, local government official Ha Ban, president of the Kon Tum People's Committee, said on state television.

When Typhoon Ketsana hit Vietnam, more than 30 people were killed and almost 200,000 people fled their homes; severe flooding remains in central provinces.

In Cambodia, at least 11 people have died in Kampong Thom province in central Cambodia.

"We're used to storms that sweep away one or two houses. But I've never seen a storm this strong," said Nam Tum, governor of Cambodia's Kampong Thom province.

More to come

Meanwhile, a new typhoon, named Parma, is gaining strength about 650 km (404 miles) off the country's eastern coast.

It was bringing winds of 150 km (93 miles) per hour, and was expected to hit land on Saturday in the northeastern Philippines, weather forecasters said.

<a class="" href="/2/hi/in_pictures/8278847.stm">In pictures: Philippines relief effort</a> <a class="" href="/2/hi/talking_point/8276970.stm">Eyewitness: Philippines floods</a>

In the Philippines, the government said it now believed 246 people had died after the storm struck on Saturday, a figure that is expected to rise as mud is cleared from the worst affected areas.

Almost two million people were affected by the flooding in Manila, the worst to hit the city in 40 years. At one point, 80% of the city was submerged.

Ketsana, with winds of up to 100km/h (60mph), hit the Philippines early on Saturday, crossing the main northern Luzon island before heading out toward the South China Sea.