Tropical storm leaves towns submerged, 76 dead in Philippines

LAUREL, Philippines: Homeowners in the northern Philippines used spades and rakes to clear out debris left by Tropical Storm Trami on Friday while rescuers trawled through thick mud looking for the missing as the death toll rose to 76.

Tens of thousands of people were displaced by floods fueled by a torrential downpour that dumped two months´ worth of rain over just two days in some areas. “Many are still trapped on the roofs of their homes and asking for help,” Andre Dizon, police director for the hard-hit Bicol region, told AFP. “We are hoping that the floods will subside today since the rain has stopped.”

But accessibility remained a major issue for rescuers Friday, particularly in Bicol, President Ferdinand Marcos said. “That´s the problem we´re having with Bicol, so difficult to penetrate,” he said, adding that the heavily saturated ground led to “landslides in areas that didn´t have landslides before.”

In Laurel, a scenic town nestled near volcanic Lake Taal south of the capital Manila, AFP reporters saw roads blocked by felled trees, vehicles half-submerged in mud and homes severely damaged by flash flooding.

“We saw washing machines, cars, home equipment, roofs being swept away,” Mimie Dionela, 56, told AFP. “We´re lucky (the rain) happened in the morning, for sure many would´ve died if it happened at night,” she said. “It was indescribable how scared we were.”

Islao Malabanan, 63, agreed he was alive only because the flood occurred during daytime, but said his family had lost everything “including our clothes”. Jona Maulion, who started an auto repair business in Laurel less than a year ago, questioned if her family could afford to restart from scratch.

“We thought we were on the way to success in the business,” the 47-year-old said. “I didn´t know that this would happen, everything is gone.” As Trami departed the Philippines in the early hours, travelling west over the South China Sea, the storm´s death toll was swelling as fresh reports of victims emerged.