Two killed in landslides, floods caused by storm Bailu in Philippines

Two people were killed in landslides and floods causedby tropical storm Bailu in the northern Philippines, localauthorities said on Saturday.A 17-year-old girl was killed when a landslide buried a house inPasuquin town in Ilocos Norte province, while a 37-year-old man wasswept away by floods in nearby Laoag City, the provincial disasterrisk management office said.Two children - aged 9 and 11 - were also injured in a separatelandslide in Pasuquin, the office said. More than 8,200 residents were affected by the floods and landslides,it added.Bailu was packing maximum sustained winds of 100 kilometres per hour(km/h) and gusts of up to 125 km/h as it crossed over the northernPhilippines to Taiwan, where it made landfall on Saturday.It has dumped heavy rains over northern provinces and metropolitanManila over the past two days, triggering floods and causingsuspension of school classes in some areas. Each year the Philippines is hit by an average of 20 cyclones,causing floods, landslides and other accidents.One of the strongest in recent memory, Typhoon Haiyan, hit thecountry in November 2013, killing more than 6,300 people anddisplacing more than 4 million.Bailu made landfall in southern Taiwan on Saturday before heading forChina's south-eastern coast.At least six people in the eastern and central parts of the islandwere injured in weather-related accidents, according to the CentralEmergency Operation Centre (CEOC).Meanwhile, 14 tourists trapped by landslides in mountainous areas ineastern Hualien County were rescued on Saturday, CEOC said.The passage of Bailu damaged power poles in southern and easternparts of Taiwan, once leaving more than 95,000 households withoutelectricity on Saturday.