The death toll of Typhoon Morakot hit 163 in Taiwan as of 10:00 PM on Saturday, 10 more than Friday's figure, local disaster response authorities said.

The authorities also reported 503 missing and 45 people injured as of Saturday night.

The heaviest confirmed death tolls were reported in the counties of Kaohsiung with 96, Tainan with 28 and Pingtung with 22.

Search for the victims is still underway at two villages in Kaohsiung where hundreds of villagers were feared buried alive by mudslides. Local emergency response center in Kaohsiung was still working on the exact casualty figures.

Morakot on August 8 was the worst typhoon to hit the island in nearly 50 years, wreaking havoc across the central and southern regions.

(Xinhua News Agency August 23, 2009)