A man affected by mudslides from Mayon volcano during the Typhoon Durian tries to dig his truck out of the mud in Legazpi City, Albay province, south of Manila, Dec. 5, 2006. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery >>>

MANILA, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- The confirmed death toll reached 526 with 740 reported missing after super typhoon Durian hit the Philippines, the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) reported on Tuesday.

    The NDCC has accounted 76 more deaths in connection with typhoon Durian, bringing the official number of people to perish from the calamity to 526 on Tuesday from 450 on Monday, said NDCC executive Glenn Rabonza.

    Most of the fatalities took place in the villages near the Mount Mayon volcano where torrential rains brought down by super ash and stones from the slopes of the volcano, burying hundreds of people alive on Thursday.

    Rabonza said the number of injured and missing victims continued to rise also.

    As of 12 noon, Rabonza said the number of people injured by the typhoon stood at 1,000 while the number of missing went up to 740 compared to the figure of 507 injured and 599 missing as of Monday.

    Rabonza also said that the number of residents to be affected also went up to 334,567 families or 1,543,778 people. Of the number, 16,952 families or 82,915 people are staying in evacuation centers manned by social workers.

    Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has declared a state of national calamity on Sunday and ordered the release of one billion pesos (20 million U.S. dollars) for recovery operations in areas hit by typhoon Durian.