The estate is irrigated, on the highway, close to the region's biggest city, Cagayan de Oro.

CNN: INSIDE STORY: PHILIPPINES

The ports of Iligan and nearby Cagayan de Oro bore the brunt of the flooding.

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

Some day, when Cagayan de Oro comes into its own, the estate will be in the suburbs.

CNN: INSIDE STORY: PHILIPPINES

Officials in Cagayan de Oro said corpses were piling up unclaimed at mortuaries and overworked staff had run out of coffins.

BBC: Mass burial for Philippines floods victims

The senator has filed a bill to set up appeals courts in key cities outside Manila: Baguio and Naga in Luzon island, Iloilo and Cebu in the Visayas, and Cagayan de Oro and Davao in Mindanao.

CNN: Senator Fernan's 10-year crusade for speedy justice