Eleven dead in Philippines as tropical storm Kompasu triggers landslides and flooding

Seven people are missing amid power disruptions in flood-hit towns and cities

Tropical storm Kompasu set off landslides and flash floods on Tuesday as it ripped through the northern Philippines, leaving at least 11 people dead and seven missing, officials said.

More than 6,500 people were transferred from homes in several towns and cities swamped by floods. Incessant rain and strong winds also toppled trees and knocked down power.

Six people died in landslides that damaged their houses in the mountainous northern province of Benguet. Three people in the region remain missing. A security guard at a seaport drowned after he was swept away by strong waves in Claveria town in Cagayan, disaster response officials said.

ExpandAutoplay

Governor Matthew Marcos Manotoc, left, conducts an inspection during a relief operation in Batac, a city in Ilocos Norte province, Philippines, on Tuesday, after Tropical Cyclone Kompasu hit the northern island of Luzon. Photo: EPA

In western Palawan province, four people died and another four went missing in flashfloods in Narra town following monsoon rains enhanced by the storm. The coastguard rescued elderly residents and children trapped in submerged homes on Monday and carried them through floodwaters in a rural village in Brooke’s Point town in Palawan.

Kompasu has left the Philippines and was last tracked over the South China Sea heading towards China’s Hainan island and later Vietnam.

Read More

Who is Maria Ressa? Philippines' first Nobel winner shone light on drugs war

About 20 storms and typhoons each year lash the Philippines, which also lies in the so-called Pacific “Ring of Fire”, a region often hit by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, making the South-East Asian archipelago one of the most disaster-prone in the world.

Updated: October 12, 2021, 6:30 PM