MANILA — The U.S. military trucked in supplies and marshaled helicopters and Navy ships as the Philippines struggled with the aftermath of back-to-back storms that have left more than 600 dead.
Filipino rescuers said they still hoped to find more survivors in the stricken north of the country, but Saturday they retrieved only bodies.
With roads blocked and bridges washed away, the Philippine government's resources have been stretched thin.
Officials have asked U.S. troops in the country for an annual military exercise to extend relief operations.
Troops from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, based in Okinawa, Japan, had just finished rescue and cleanup work around Manila, which experienced the worst flooding in more than four decades after Tropical Storm Ketsana dumped record rains Sept. 26. More than 287,000 people remain in evacuation centers.
Then Typhoon Parma struck Oct. 3 and has lingered as a tropical depression for about a week, also over the main northern Philippine island of Luzon.
