Deadly, Slow-Moving Storm Batters Southern Philippines

Rescuers on life rafts raced to pluck residents trapped on rooftops Friday, as Tropical Storm Tembin dumped heavy rains in the southern Philippines, killing at least 20 people, officials said.

The storm hit the eastern portion of Mindanao island late Thursday, bringing gusts of up to 130 km (81 miles) per hour with heavy rains that caused the banks of major waterways to spill over.

Floods affected about 29,500 residents and killed at least 20 people, according to police regional spokesman Superintendent Lemuel Gonda.

Four were also missing in floods that swamped a highway in the town of Lanao del Sur, rendering it impassable, provincial spokesman Zia Alonto Adiong said.

By Friday, the severe weather system was moving westward at a slow pace and was expected to pass out of the Philippines by Sunday.

Raging flood waters submerged houses in villages nears the swollen Cagayan de Oro River, and rescuers on life rafts could be seen Friday pulling out to safety a few residents trapped on rooftops.

City officials said more than 14,600 residents had been evacuated on Friday and about 4,000 people were rescued from flooded homes.

Tembin came days after Tropical Storm Kai-Tak caused widespread destruction in the central Philippines, killing at least 30 people and displacing more than 240,000.

Most of the bodies were recovered from low-lying villages and in towns near hinterlands areas, including in Biliran, where landslides killed at least 14 people.