Rescue workers in the Philippines worked tirelessly against floodwaters to reach residents stranded on their rooftops on Friday, October 25, as ‘Tropical Storm Trami’ moved out to sea, leaving at least 40 dead.
Tens of thousands are still displaced after escaping the floods brought on by heavy rains worth two months of precipitation dropped in just two days in certain regions.
“Many are still trapped on the roofs of their homes and asking for help.
“We are hoping the floods will subside today, as the rain has stopped,” Andre Dizon, police director for the hard-hit Bicol region, Philippines, said.
At a press briefing, President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos stated that accessibility continues to be a significant challenge for rescuers, especially in Bicol.
“There were landslides in areas that didn’t have landslides before, so I guess the soil is completely saturated and the water has nowhere to go,” he said.
Adding that, “the cities of Naga and Legazpi reported many casualties, but we haven’t been able to get in yet.”
As the storm left the Philippines in the early hours of Friday, October 25, heading west over the South China Sea, the death toll increased with new reports of victims coming in.
In Batangas province, located south of Manila, Philippines, police staff sergeant Nelson Cabuso reported that six unidentified bodies were discovered in Sampaloc village.
“The area was hit by a flash flood yesterday.
“Our team is still in the area to check if there are other casualties,” he said.
According to police corporal Alvin de Leon, another five individuals lost their lives in a flash flood in the coastal village of Subic Ilaya, Philippines, bringing the death toll to at least 40.
Although Manila, Philippines, appeared to avoid the intense flooding experienced during Typhoon Gaemi in July, but on Friday, October 25, a large subdivision south of the capital was largely underwater, having experienced two months worth intense rainfall in just two days.
Government offices and schools throughout Luzon, the main island of the Philippines, remained closed on Friday, October 25, due to ongoing storm surge warnings along the west coast, with wave heights potentially reaching two meters.
According to Jofren Habaluyas, a specialist from the state weather agency, Batangas province experienced ‘two months worth of rain,’ totaling 391.3 millimeters, on Thursday, October 24 and Friday, October 25.
An official report late Thursday, October 24, indicated that 193,000 people had been evacuated as flooding transformed streets into rivers and buried some towns under thick volcanic sediment loosened by the storm.
Many of those impacted were in the Bicol region, Philippines, where over 30,000 residents evacuated on Wednesday, October 23, due to ‘unexpectedly high’ floodwaters.
Rescuers in Naga City and the municipality of Nabua, Philippines, used boats to reach residents stranded on rooftops, many of whom called for help through Facebook posts.
In the Batangas town of Lemery, located about 97 kilometers (60 miles) south of Manila, Phillipines, a hospital had to turn away patients as its wards and emergency rooms became inundated.
The search for a missing fisherman whose boat sank off the coast of Bulacan province, west of Manila, Philippines, was suspended on Friday, October 25, due to strong currents.
Approximately 20 major storms and typhoons strike the Philippines or its nearby waters annually, leading to destruction of homes and infrastructure and resulting in numerous fatalities.
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