Typhoon Kalmaegi has left at least 66 people dead with 26 others missing in the central Philippines, many in widespread flooding that trapped people on their roofs and swept away scores of cars in a hard-hit province still recovering from a deadly earthquake, officials said Wednesday.

Among the dead were six people who were killed in a separate incident when a Philippine air force helicopter crashed in the southern province of Agusan del Sur on Tuesday while en route to help provide humanitarian help to provinces battered by Kalmaegi, the military said without providing other details, including what could have caused the crash.

Kalmaegi blew away from western Palawan province into the South China Sea before noon on Wednesday with sustained winds of up to 130 kph (81 mph) and gusts of up to 180 kph (112 mph), according to forecasters.

An official said most of the deaths were reported in the central province of Cebu, which was pummeled by Kalmaegi on Tuesday, setting off flash floods and causing a river and other waterways to swell.

The resulting flooding engulfed residential communities, forcing startled residents to climb up to their roofs, where they desperately pleaded to be rescued as the floodwaters rose, officials said.

At least 49 mostly drowned in floods and a few others died due to landslides and falling debris in Cebu, where 13 of the 26 missing were reported, the Office of Civil Defense said on Wednesday.

The Philippine Red Cross received many calls from people needing rescue in Cebu from their roofs, its secretary-general Gwendolyn Pang said Tuesday, adding the efforts had to wait until flooding subsided to lessen the risks for emergency personnel.

Forecasters estimate the storm will reach Vietnam’s coast Friday morning.