Heavy monsoon rains have left 11 people dead and forced more than 74,000 to flee flooding in the northern parts of Luzon, the government's disaster agency said Saturday. The National Disaster Coordinating Council said the deaths occurred Wednesday through Friday after widespread flooding and landslides on the main island of Luzon. Landslides killed two children in Laguna province south of Manila and three security guards of a mining company in Zambales province west of the capital, the disaster council said. Six others drowned in raging floodwaters – one in Ilocos Sur province, three in Pampanga, one in Bulacan and one in Zambales. The agency said three people were missing – two who were swept away by floodwaters and a fishermen who hasn't come home since Thursday.More than 4,000 people have fled to evacuation centers and about 70,000 others have sought shelter with relatives and friends, it said. The weather bureau warned that coastal waters will be rough this weekend in the affected areas of the north, but the coast guard has not stopped ferry operations. At least eight areas were under Storm Signal No. 1 as tropical depression “Nando” was crossing Northern Luzon early Sunday. “Northern Luzon will experience rains and gusty winds and the coastal waters will be moderate to rough. Western Visayas and the rest of Luzon will have cloudy skies with scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms becoming widespread rains over the Western sections of Central and Southern Luzon which may trigger flash floods and landslides,” it said.
