Flooding and multiple landslides in the southern Philippines have killed at at least 31 people on Friday, a senior government official said.
“Most of the victims died from flash floods, and then landslides that buried houses,” Nasrullah Imam, head of the provincial disaster risk reduction and manage office said.
“Some of the victims were trapped in their homes,” he added.
Torrential rains brought on by Tropical Storm Nalgae swamped southern Philippine province of Maguindanao overnight.
Many residents were caught by surprise by the rapidly rising floodwaters, Naguib Sinarimbo, civil defence chief for the regional government said.
Rescuers retrieved 16 bodies from Datu Odin Sinsuat, 10 from Datu Blah Sinsuat and five from Upi town, he told reporters.
Rescue operations were ongoing and Sinarimbo said the death toll was expected to rise. “The numbers are still moving and we still expect them to rise.”
Sinarimbo said there could be more flooding on Friday because of heavy rain
The weather bureau expected the full force of the tropical storm to the country’s eastern coast from the Pacific Ocean on Saturday morning.
This is a developing story, more to come….
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