MANILA - At least 55 people are feared to have died in western Mindanao of south Philippines and many others are missing due to massive flooding caused by tropical storm Washin (local name Sendong), a top official of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) in the region said Saturday.

OCD regional director Ana Caneda said that only five are confirmed to have perished but added it's hard to include the others in their official tally pending validation and identification.

Dozens have died in the regions, Caneda said, adding "we will not confirm that. We are verifying because it's hard to make a count without the names."

Pressed how many more fatalities are subject to verification, she said, "it is quite many...Actually, about 50. This is subject to verification."

Caneda said that a total of 46 villages in Cagayan del Oro City and Iligan City have been flooded.

Evacuation centers have been put up in the two cities but she could not immediately give figures on the displaced people."Our priority now in the evacuation centers is to feed them (the evacuees),"the official said.

Meanwhile, the Philippine National Disaster Risk Reduction and management Council said in its Saturday morning report that 20 people have been confirmed dead, plus 9 unidentified bodies. Most of the victims died in Mindanao region.