Two concrete communal tombs were being constructed in Iligan, said Teresita Badiang, an engineer at the Iligan mayor's office.

BBC: Philippines floods: Aid agencies say 120,000 in need

The robot aircraft, known as aerosondes, are the brainchildren of an engineer called Tad McGeer and are being developed in a collaboration between the Insitu Group, a firm based in White Salmon, Washington State, and the Australian Bureau of Meteorology.

ECONOMIST: Robots in the cockpit