At least 30 people were killed in landslides and flash floods as tropical storm Jangmi slowly crossed the southern and central Philippines, dumping heavy rain for a second day yesterday, officials said.
Rivers burst banks and submerged villages in “neck-deep” floods while hillsides crashed onto homes and highways.
Some residents in vulnerable areas ignored evacuation warnings, Stephany Uy-Tan, mayor of the town of Catbalogan in Samar province, told DZMM radio. Twelve people were killed after a landslide buried two vans on a mountainside highway in Catbalogan, she said. “Rescuers report hearing voices from the rubble.”
Jangmi, which was forecast to bring up to 15mm of rain an hour, barrelled through fishing and tourist areas yesterday, a day after it smashed into the mountainous southeastern region on Mindanao island.
Thousands were evacuated ahead of the storm’s arrival, with most expected to be sent home later yesterday as floodwaters start to recede, officials said.
Jangmi’s 65km/h wind gusts were weak compared to the last storm to traverse the central region earlier this month, Hagupit, which had winds of up to 210km/h. “We are focused on floods and landslides because, while the storm’s winds are weak, it will bring heavy rain,” national civil defence chief Alexander Pama said.
Five people were killed when a landslide buried a house in the town of Tanauan in Leyte province, regional civil defence spokeswoman Blanche Gobenciong said. And eight people including three eight-year-old children drowned after raging floodwaters washed away their shanty homes in the coastal town of Ronda in Cebu province, according to regional civil defence officer Lemuel Tabada. The same office reported that two teenage boys died from electrocution while wading through floodwaters at Loon in Bohol province.
On Monday at least three people were killed after Jangmi, known locally as Seniang, slammed into southeastern provinces, triggering floods and landslides.
Up to 14000 people were evacuated in Surigao del Sur on Mindanao, where Jangmi first hit. They were due to be sent home yesterday as floodwaters receded.
Ten flights to and from the affected areas yesterday were cancelled.
Jangmi will be out of the central region after midnight today before brushing the southern tip of Palawan island on its way out of the country tomorrow, according to the state weather bureau.
The Philippines is battered by about 20 storms every year, many of them deadly.
Last year Super Typhoon Haiyan, the strongest ever to hit the country, left 7350 people dead or missing in central regions as it stirred up tsunami-like waves, wiping out entire towns. In nearby Malaysia nearly a quarter of a million people have fled their homes, with the government coming under fire for its perceived slow response.
The National Security Council said that “exceptionally high” water levels had cut off rescuers from relief centres as the death toll rose to 21 across the northeast. Fifteen people have been killed in neighbouring southern Thailand.
Most criticism was directed at Philippines Prime Minister Najib Razak for his absence as the disaster unfolded after being photographed playing golf with US President Barack Obama in Hawaii.
“No matter how prepared we are, there will always be a bigger and more devastating disaster that tests the capability and resources of the country,” the council said in a statement to the online news portal, the Malaysian Insider.
Opposition member Tony Pua denounced the government’s reluctance to declare a state of emergency and “complete lack of urgency” on the matter.
Malaysia’s eastern states are home to many rice fields but officials have not yet estimated damage.
30 die as storm wallops Philippines
Rivers burst banks and submerged villages in “neck-deep” floods while hillsides crashed onto homes and highways.
Some residents in vulnerable areas ignored evacuation warnings, Stephany Uy-Tan, mayor of the town of Catbalogan in Samar province, told DZMM radio. Twelve people were killed after a landslide buried two vans on a mountainside highway in Catbalogan, she said. “Rescuers report hearing voices from the rubble.”
Jangmi, which was forecast to bring up to 15mm of rain an hour, barrelled through fishing and tourist areas yesterday, a day after it smashed into the mountainous southeastern region on Mindanao island.
Thousands were evacuated ahead of the storm’s arrival, with most expected to be sent home later yesterday as floodwaters start to recede, officials said.
Jangmi’s 65km/h wind gusts were weak compared to the last storm to traverse the central region earlier this month, Hagupit, which had winds of up to 210km/h. “We are focused on floods and landslides because, while the storm’s winds are weak, it will bring heavy rain,” national civil defence chief Alexander Pama said.
Five people were killed when a landslide buried a house in the town of Tanauan in Leyte province, regional civil defence spokeswoman Blanche Gobenciong said. And eight people including three eight-year-old children drowned after raging floodwaters washed away their shanty homes in the coastal town of Ronda in Cebu province, according to regional civil defence officer Lemuel Tabada. The same office reported that two teenage boys died from electrocution while wading through floodwaters at Loon in Bohol province.
On Monday at least three people were killed after Jangmi, known locally as Seniang, slammed into southeastern provinces, triggering floods and landslides.
Up to 14000 people were evacuated in Surigao del Sur on Mindanao, where Jangmi first hit. They were due to be sent home yesterday as floodwaters receded.
Ten flights to and from the affected areas yesterday were cancelled.
Jangmi will be out of the central region after midnight today before brushing the southern tip of Palawan island on its way out of the country tomorrow, according to the state weather bureau.
The Philippines is battered by about 20 storms every year, many of them deadly.
Last year Super Typhoon Haiyan, the strongest ever to hit the country, left 7350 people dead or missing in central regions as it stirred up tsunami-like waves, wiping out entire towns. In nearby Malaysia nearly a quarter of a million people have fled their homes, with the government coming under fire for its perceived slow response.
The National Security Council said that “exceptionally high” water levels had cut off rescuers from relief centres as the death toll rose to 21 across the northeast. Fifteen people have been killed in neighbouring southern Thailand.
Most criticism was directed at Philippines Prime Minister Najib Razak for his absence as the disaster unfolded after being photographed playing golf with US President Barack Obama in Hawaii.
“No matter how prepared we are, there will always be a bigger and more devastating disaster that tests the capability and resources of the country,” the council said in a statement to the online news portal, the Malaysian Insider.
Opposition member Tony Pua denounced the government’s reluctance to declare a state of emergency and “complete lack of urgency” on the matter.
Malaysia’s eastern states are home to many rice fields but officials have not yet estimated damage.
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