The number of reported fatalities in the Bicol Region due to Severe Tropical Storm Kristine has increased to 20, Police Regional Office 5 (PRO-5) said Thursday, October 24, 2024.

“Ngayong alas siete ng umaga, nakapagtala tayo ng 20 na nasawi po. Ika-clarify natin na itong figure na ito ay subject pa rin ito sa validation ng DILG Management of the Dead and Missing,” PRO-5 chief Police Brigadier General Andre Dizon told Super Radyo dzBB in an interview.

(As of 7 a.m., we recorded 20 deaths. Let's clarify that this figure is still subject to validation by the DILG Management of the Dead and Missing.)

Of the total fatalities in the region, Dizon said seven are reported in Naga, five in Catanduanes, four in Albay, and one each in Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Sorsogon, and Masbate.

The victims died due to drowning, landslides, and fallen trees, according to Dizon.

Four people are also reported missing -- two in Masbate and one each in Camarines Sur and Albay.

A total of 119,488 people or 23,517 were staying in evacuation centers in the region, according to the data from PRO-5.

Floods were reported in 722 barangays in the region, most of them in Camarines Sur with 562, followed by Albay with 74.

Landslides were also reported in 19 areas including 10 in Albay, four in Sorsogon, three in Camarines Sur, and two in Camarines Norte.

A total of 3,257 passengers were stranded in seaports as 26 sea trips were canceled in Bicol. Eight flights in the region were also canceled.

Due to the impact of Kristine, 729 heavy vehicles and 45 light vehicles were also stranded.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) has deployed 908 police personnel in Bicol to provide assistance to the victims of the inclement weather.

According to PAGASA’s 8 a.m. bulletin, was last spotted in the vicinity of Aguinaldo, Ifugao packing maximum sustained winds of 95 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 160 kph.

The severe tropical storm was moving Westward at 20 kph.

(via Joviland Rita, GMA Integrated News)