MANILA (Reuters) -At least three people were killed in the Philippines after a tropical storm, which intensified into a typhoon before hitting land late on Thursday, swept across central islands and southern Luzon, days after a super typhoon struck the north.
Government work and classes in many parts of the country, including in Metro Manila, were suspended ahead of Tropical Storm Bualoi. It struck just a few days after Super Typhoon Ragasa left a trail of damage in the northern Philippines, killing 14 people before wreaking havoc in Taiwan, where at least 15 people died.
The latest storm made landfall in Eastern Samar in central Philippines before crossing into Masbate and sweeping through the Bicol region in southern Luzon.
Disaster officials said the three fatalities were in Masbate province. One was hit by a falling tree, another drowned, while the third was killed when a wall collapsed.
Masbate Governor Antonio Kho, in a media briefing, appealed for immediate assistance from the central government, citing the urgent need to clear debris, restore power and reopen ports to allow the delivery of aid.
In other parts of Southern Luzon, local officials reported heavy rains and winds, power outages, and damage to crops and infrastructure.
Ahead of Bualoi, named Opong locally, hundreds of thousands of people were preemptively evacuated, including Manila resident JC Borromeo, who was staying in an evacuation centre with his three children.
“We live just by the corner of the river and it would be difficult when the water rises,” he said while carrying his baby.
Bualoi, packing maximum wind speeds of 110 kph and gusts rising to 135 kph, is forecast to intensify into a typhoon again as it moves toward Vietnam.
The Vietnamese government said the fast-moving storm would hit the country’s northern and central coast on Monday, triggering torrential rains from September 28 to September 30.
“Heavy rains could cause serious flooding in low-lying areas, as well as urban and industrial areas,” the national weather agency said in a statement on Friday.
Rainfall in several parts could reach 150 milimetres within the next 24 hours, according to the agency.
(Reporting by Karen Lema and Adrian Portugal in Manila; Additional reporting by Khanh Vu in Vietnam; Editing by David Stanway)
