Basyang leaves 3 dead, 30,000 displaced

MANILA, Philippines—Three people died while close to 30,000 people were affected after a storm whipped through disaster-weary Visayas and Mindanao, knocking out power and leaving roads impassable, the Philippine disaster management agency said Saturday.

Tropical storm “Basyang” left a trail of devastation in Southern Leyte and Cebu before it weakened into a tropical depression late morning  on Saturday.

Heavy rains triggered landslides in 10 areas in Southern Leyte while four incidents of flooding in the Eastern Visayas province were reported by  the National Disaster Risk Reduction And Management Council.

Off Cebu’s Camotes Island, a motorized boat with 10 people on board capsized, leaving 24-year-old Danny Tundag of  Daanbantayan dead.

Dionesio Paler,66, of Maasin City in Southern, also drowned. Jose Haji Aque Babatid, 22, of Balamban, Cebu, meanwhile, died after being electrocuted.

A total of 28,892 people were affected in seven provinces in Visayas and Mindanao, the NDRRMC said. More than 18,000 displaced residents were temporarily housed in 60 evacuation centers.

Close to 1,000 sea vessels were barred from leaving various ports in the affected regions, leaving 7,464 passengers stranded. Fifty-six domestic flights were cancelled.

As of 4 p.m. Saturday, Tropical Depression Basyang  was located 88 kilometers southwest of Coron, Palawan. It was moving west at 30 kilmeters per hour with maximum winds of 55 kph near the center, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical And Astronomical Services Administration said.

Basyang  was expected to be at 764 km west of Coron, outside the Philippine area of responsibility, by Sunday afternoon.

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