FILE PHOTO: A car on the main road of Barangay Masarawag, Guinobatan town in Albay is half-buried in lahar that had washed down from Mayon Volcano due to heavy rains dumped by Tropical Storm Kristine (international name: Trami) on Tuesday, October 22, 2024. —MARK ALVIC ESPLANA
MANILA, Philippines — The Bicol police reported that deaths from the onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Kristine (international name: Trami) in the region climbed to 26 as of Friday morning.
The Police Regional Office (PRO) 5, however, said it continues to validate the reported death count, as well as the nine and three reported injured and missing, respectively.
On Thursday, October 24, the police said they were verifying the reported death of 20 people in Bicol, which was severely battered by Kristine.
READ: PNP validates 20 deaths due to Kristine-induced floods in Bicol
In a bulletin issued at 3 a.m. on Friday, the PRO 5 said that 314,309 people or 106,303 families in the Bicol region were evacuated amid Kristine-triggered inclement weather. The regional police also reported monitoring stranded passengers – 4,303 – at Bicol seaports.
The PRO 5 further noted that 815 light vehicles and 831 heavy vehicles are still stranded in Bicol as of Friday morning.
The Bicol Region was among Luzon areas harshly hit by Kristine, which wide band covered even parts of Visayas and Mindanao.
READ: Kristine triggers floods, landslides, blackouts
The PRO 5 said a total of 586 barangays in Albay (11), Camarines Norte (26), Camarines Sur (540), and Naga City (9) have been flooded following continued torrential rains triggered by Kristine.
The state weather bureau said in its 5 a.m. bulletin on Friday that the center of Kristine was last spotted 125 kilometers west-northwest of Bacnotan, La Union, packing maximum sustained winds of 95 kilometers per hour (kph) and gustiness of up to 115 kph.
Kristine is forecast to move west-northwestward to westward over the next 48 hours and exit the Philippine area of responsibility by Friday afternoon.