5 dead, 3 missing in southern Philippines floods

Five people have died and three more are missing as floods hit two southern Philippine cities, forcing about 400 residents to flee their submerged homes, officials said on Wednesday.

Swollen rivers burst their banks and unleashed waist-deep floods on shanty towns in the cities of Malaybalay and Valencia on Mindanao island this week, provincial civil defence chief Ana Caneda said.

Heavy rains have swamped the region since late last month and the government warned residents of vulnerable areas, including riverbank shanties, to evacuate, but some refused, she said. “They may not have relatives to go to and don’t want to go to the evacuation centres so they... (chose) to sit it out,” <g data-gr-id="12">Caneda</g> said, adding that some had refused to leave their properties unguarded.

Rescuers recovered the corpses of five shantytown residents today when monsoon rains let up for the day, but three other residents remain missing, she added.