Search-and-rescue teams in the southern Philippines province of Maguindanao said Friday that flash floods and landslides spawned by Tropical Storm Nalgae had left at least 42 people dead, with the toll expected to rise.
Regional minister Naguib Sinarimbo said most of the victims were in three towns in the hard-hit province. He said preparations had been made but the rains were more intense than expected.
In a telephone interview with the Reuters news agency, Sinarimbo said rescue- and-retrieval operations had been suspended overnight Friday and would resume Saturday morning. He also said many more people were feared still trapped under mud and floodwaters, particularly in the town of Datu Odin.
Civil defense and coast guard officials said they used rubber boats to rescue residents trapped by floodwaters in the southern province of Sultan Kudarat. Coast guard officials also canceled ferry service and sea travel through much of the archipelago that makes up the nation.
Forecasters said late Friday that Tropical Storm Nalgae was about 180 kilometers east of Samar province with sustained winds of up to 85 kilometers per hour and was moving northwest. It was expected to make landfall on Samar Island late Friday and was forecast to track over the Bicol peninsula early Saturday.
Officials said at least 5,000 people had been evacuated as a precaution ahead of the storm.
Source: Voice of America