MANILA, Philippines – At least 23 people have died and 15 remain missing in the Philippines as a result of rains and landslides caused by three tropical storms, emergency services reported Thursday.
Storms Benfica, Gener and Pulasan affected various areas of the Philippine archipelago between Friday of last week and Wednesday and left heavy rains, especially in the southern island of Mindanao and the island of Luzon, in the north and where Manila is located.
In its report released today, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC, acronym in English) indicates that 23 people died, 13 were injured and 15 are being searched for by emergency teams.
The Mimaropa region in the west of the country, which covers the tourist island of Palawan, is the area with the most victims, with nine dead and twelve missing.
According to official data, more than 1 million people have been affected by the storms, of which only Gener made landfall in Luzon on Tuesday, while Benbica and Pulasan, which later hit China, brought rain clouds to Philippine territory.
These meteorological phenomena were preceded by storm Yagi, which left 21 dead in the Philippines as it passed through the country between September 1 and 3.
Later, on its way to Vietnam, Yagi gained strength to become the most powerful typhoon recorded in Asia this year and caused floods, flash floods and landslides that caused around 300 deaths in the Indochinese country, ten in Thailand, 4 deaths in Laos and about 220 deaths in Burma.