About three people were killed in landslides and flash floods caused by tropical storm Trami in the Philippines, where over 24,000 residents have been displaced, officials said Wednesday.
Government work and school classes were suspended in the capital of Manila and other provinces in Luzon island, ahead of Trami’s expected landfall on Wednesday evening.
Trami, locally called Kristine, has triggered floods and landslides in the eastern Philippines, where at least three have been reported killed.
There were no details yet on the deaths, but police said the fatalities were from Naga City, Masbate and Catanduanes provinces.
More than 5,300 people are stranded in seaports after sea travel were suspended, the coastguard said.
In the eastern province of Albay and nearby Naga City, residents were calling for help to be rescued from their rooftops.
Rescuers were having difficulty reaching the victims because of the floods and debris.
“Most of all rivers have overflowed due to the intense rain,” said Dante Baclao, head of the Albay public safety and emergency management office.
“We experienced this kind of rain 55 years ago, in 1969. This is really record-breaking.”
Baclao said emergency teams have been prepared since Tuesday evening, but could not reach many affected areas.
Trami was packing maximum sustained winds of 85 kilometres per hour and gusts of up to 105 km/h, the weather bureau said.
It was moving north-north-west at 30 km/h.
It is forecast to intensify into a severe tropical storm before making landfall over the province of Isabela on Wednesday night.
It would cross the northern part of Luzon and was forecast to exit the Philippines by Friday.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr ordered government agencies to closely monitor the volume of rainfall in the coming days and to prepare supplies and emergency aid for the affected residents.
“The worst is yet to come, I’m afraid,” he said during a press conference, the disaster agency and other government offices. “Let’s all prepare.
“The volumes of water are unprecedented. We should closely monitor that.” (dpa/NAN).
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