Floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains killed two people were killed and displaced thousands in the eastern Philippines, a provincial governor said Thursday, according to dpa. The victims, a mother and her son, drowned when they were swept away Wednesday by floodwaters while crossing a spillway in Manito town in Albay province, 300 kilometres south-east of Manila. Governor Joey Salceda said more than 4,000 people had been forced to flee their homes in Albay and nearby Sorsogon province due to the floods and landslides. Salceda said it had been raining continuously in the area for the past eight days, causing rivers to overflow and loosening soil from the mountains. Several domestic flights going to Albay, Sorsogon and Masbate provinces were cancelled due to the bad weather, and a number of roads have been impassable due to landslides. The weather bureau said the rains were triggered by a wind convergence that affected the eastern Philippines.
