Kristine death toll rises to 26

Classes, work in Luzon still suspended today

- MICHAEL PUNONGBAYAN and EMMANUEL TUPAS

Rescuers raced yesterday to reach residents stranded by fast-rising floodwaters after torrential rains from Severe Tropical Storm Kristine submerged villages and left up to 26 people dead.

Schools and government offices were shuttered across Luzon as the storm made landfall in Isabela yesterday morning after first leaving a trail of destruction in the Bicol region.

"The rain is not stopping, so the floods are going up fast.

We have received countless reports asking for rescue," Batangas Disaster Risk Reduction and Management officer April Serrano said.

A hospital in the town of Lemery, Batangas was forced to turn away patients as its wards and emergency rooms were flooded, according to the provincial health office.

On Luzon's western coast, a surge warning was raised in Pangasinan at around 2 p.m., with officials estimating waves could reach as high as two meters.

In the hardest-hit areas of Naga City and Nabua municipality in Bicol, rescuers were using boats to reach residents stranded on rooftops.

"They are seeking assistance through (Facebook) posts and that's how we learned about them," Bicol police spokeswoman Luisa Calubaquib said.

Over 30,000 people were forced to evacuate in Bicol on Wednesday, police said, as "unexpectedly high" flooding turned streets into rivers.

Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) weather specialist Lorie dela Cruz said a month's worth of rain had been dumped in Bicol within a 24-hour window from 8 a.m. on Oct. 22 until the next morning, with Camarines Sur and Legazpi City in Albay particularly hard hit.

"As of 7 a.m., we have 20 dead (throughout the Bicol region)," Bicol police chief Brig. Gen. Andre Dizon said, attributing most of the deaths to drowning and landslides.