Tropical storm Chanchu continued to lash the Philippines on Saturday, leaving at least 21 people dead as heavy rains triggered landslides and left parts of the country under water.
Floodwaters submerged two provinces in the central Visayas region, and several villages in Leyte’s Sogod town were cut off after landslides and floods damaged a bridge and vital highway.
Chanchu was tracking west-northwest towards the South China Sea and was expected have moved on by Sunday morning, the state weather bureau said.
In the worst accident during the storm, motorboat Mae Ann 5 capsized just off the central city of Masbate Friday.
Officials are unsure how many passengers were aboard, but coast guard spokesperson Lieutenant Commander Joseph Coyme said 21 bodies had been fished out of the water.
”As of the report we got before 12 noon, there were 21 dead bodies recovered and 18 survivors,” Coyme told Agence France-Presse.
A second ferry, which was docked at a port in Albay province, sank, but there were no reports of casualties.
Coyme told AFP that a missing ferry with over 700 passengers had been located after hours of searching rough seas.
Two tugboats have been dispatched to help the Filipinas Princess, which was reported missing at the height of the storm on Friday night but was found anchored off a cove near Mindoro island south of Manila.
”The vessel took shelter in a cove because of high winds and waves. We are in contact with them and tugboats have been sent to rescue them,” Coyme said.
The Office of Civil Defence said over 23 000 people in the eastern and central regions have been evacuated, while nearly 8 000 people were stranded in major ports after the coast guard suspended sea travel.
Heavy rains and strong winds continued to pound several provinces on Saturday in the main island of Luzon. Power, which had been down in many areas, had been partly restored as of Saturday, it said.
Fallen trees and debris blown by the wind also littered some streets in Manila and in nearby suburbs.
Chanchu was packing maximum sustained winds of 95kph near the centre with gusts up to 120kph, the weather bureau said.
Its chief, Graciano Yumul, said Manila and nearby provinces, as well as the island of Marinduque to the south, would continue to experience strong winds and rains. Storm warnings in some other areas were lowered.
”It is heading towards the South China Sea and by theory the weather should be better once that happens,” Yumul told DZMM radio.
”But we are monitoring this because once it exits to the South China Sea it would intensify and there is danger it could make a U-turn back to the Philippines,” he said.