24 dead, 9 missing in slow-moving Philippine storm

Heavy rains and floods battered the northeastern Philippines for a third day Wednesday as the death toll from a slow-moving storm rose to at least 24 with nine others missing.

Waist-deep floodwaters swamped the houses of about half a million people, nearly half of the population of eastern Albay province, after Tropical Storm Nock-ten set off pounding rains since Monday and sent residents to seek shelter in churches and village halls, said Gov. Joey Salceda.

Regional civil defense chief Rafaelito Alejandro said floodwaters in Albay started to subside by noon Wednesday after the storm made landfall in Aurora, about 230 miles (370 kilometers) to the north. It packed maximum winds of 59 miles (95 kilometers) per hour and gusts of up to 75 mph (120 kph).

Alejandro said at least 20 people died in the Bicol region, which includes Albay. Eight of those were buried in landslides in Albay's Polangui township and in nearby Camarines Norte province.

Other fatalities included a mother who was bitten by a poisonous snake that was swept into her home by a flashflood near the Albay provincial capital of Legazpi.

National civil defense administrator Benito Ramos said two others drowned in Cavite province just south of Manila and one each in the central provinces of Marinduque and Iloilo.More.