‘Ramil’ triggers floods, slides in Southern Luzon

Heavy rains flood a cemetery in Guinobatan town in Albay province on All Saints’ Day. MICHAEL B. JAUCIAN

LEGAZPI CITY — Tropical Storm “Ramil” crossed Southern Luzon on Wednesday, dumping heavy rains that flooded several villages and triggered landslides in the Southern Tagalog and Bicol regions, reports from the weather bureau and disaster response agencies said.

At least two fishermen were  missing in Catanduanes province while five people were reported hurt in a landslide in Batangas province.

As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, Ramil had slightly intensified with maximum sustained winds of 55 kilometers per hour and gustiness of up to 75 kph. Storm Signal no. 1 remained hoisted over the northern section of Palawan province and southern Occidental Mindoro province as the center of the storm was located 25 km south of Coron town, Palawan.

Moderate to occasional heavy rains were expected to continue in areas with storm signals Thursday, as well as rough seas in northern Luzon and in the eastern seaboard of Central Luzon due to the combination of Ramil and the surge of the northeast monsoon, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).

Flooding in Bicol

Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Bicol, the rest of Mimaropa and the provinces of Quirino, Nueva Vizcaya and Pangasinan will experience rains that can trigger possible flash floods and landslides, the weather bureau said.

Ramil is expected to cross northern Palawan tonight and continue moving west at 18 kph toward the direction of Vietnam.

In Bicol, Claudio Yucot, Office of Civil Defense (OCD) regional director, said flooding was reported in the towns of Baao, Balatan, Garchitorena, Lagonoy and Caramoan in Camarines Sur province.

However, no evacuation was ordered in these towns.

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) asked motorists to take caution after floods and landslides were reported along sections of the road linking the towns of Lagonoy and Presentacion, also in Camarines Sur.

While DPWH teams started clearing the road, Lucy Castañeda, DPWH spokesperson in Bicol, warned motorists to be on alert for soil and rocks that may fall from the mountain along that route as rains continued in the region.

Castañeda said the Caguiscan bridge along that road was reopened on Wednesday after floodwaters receded.

In Camarines Norte province, the OCD reported flooding and landslides in the towns of Labo and Mercedes. At least 13 families (59 people) there left their villages and sought shelter in two evacuation centers.

In Albay province, families trooping to cemeteries in Guinobatan town and Legazpi City found the niches and tombstones submerged in ankle-deep water.

In Catanduanes, a search and rescue operation was launched to find two fishermen who went missing off the waters of Bato town on Tuesday night.

A report from the Bato municipal disaster risk reduction and management office said brothers Albert and Allan Pantino of Barangay Pananaogan were among a group of fishermen who left the town on board seven bancas at past 11 p.m. Tuesday.

It said one of the boats capsized after being battered by strong waves but its passengers were rescued. Another boat carrying the Pantino brothers, however, went missing.

Batangas landslide

In Batangas, five guests staying at a resort in San Juan town were hurt when a boulder hit their room following a landslide in Barangay Laiya-Ibabao early Wednesday, police said.

Chief Insp. Rocell Encarnacion, Batangas police information officer, said Emy Louise Santos, 18; Emel Luis Santos, 21; Maria Luisa Santos, 48; Baltazar Santos, 37; and Christopher Cruz, 17, were trapped after the boulder crushed a section of their room at 2:30 a.m.

Police said Christopher and Maria Luisa were pulled out of the room at 8:30 a.m.

The victims were taken to San Juan District Hospital but Baltazar and Emy Louise were later transferred to a hospital in Lipa City.

Sailing ban

The OCD issued a “no sailing” policy for fishing boats and small seacraft in the provinces of Catanduanes, Camarines Sur, Camarines Norte, Albay and Sorsogon on Wednesday following a gale warning by the weather bureau.

Yucot said coastal areas in these province experienced “rough” to “very rough” seas, with wave heights at between 3.4 meters and 4.5 meters.

Boat trips in the Mindoro provinces were canceled on Wednesday morning after the weather bureau raised Storm Signal No. 1 on the island as Ramil moved toward mainland Luzon.

Leo Romero, Philippine Ports Authority division manager in Calapan City in Oriental Mindoro province, said boat trips from Caticlan port in Malay town in Aklan province to Roxas town in Oriental Mindoro, and from Batangas to Abra de Ilog in Occidental Mindoro, were covered by the cancellation.

Boat trips will resume once storm signals are lifted, Romero said. —Reports from Mar S. Arguelles, Marrah Erika Rabe, Madonna T. Virola, Michael B. Jaucian, and Jaymee T. Gamil