According to the source, most of the fatalities were due to drowning from flash floods after two days of heavy rains that interrupted Christmas celebrations and forced more than 45 thousand people to refuge in evacuation centers.

Also in another report, the Philippine Disaster Agency said that the search for 23 persons is ongoing, taking advantage of the fact that the floods have begun to recede.

Images released on social media show coast guards, police and firefighters transporting residents along landslide-affected areas. The DSWD said rescue operations and assessments are being carried out including damages to agriculture in Eastern Visayas, Region 10 and Caraga areas.

There was no tropical storm, but a shear line, an area where warm and cold winds meet, caused rain clouds to form in the southern Philippines, giving rise to heavy rainfall, the agency added.

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