At least 42 people died and 26 were missing after landslides hit villages around Baybay City in Leyte province, the Philippines.

The number of people who lost their lives in floods and landslides triggered by tropical rains in the Philippines rose to 42, the country’s emergency agency said.

More than 17,000 people were forced to leave their homes as the storm struck the region in recent days, flooding houses, severing roads, and knocking out power.

Authorities said that more than 200 floods have been reported in the central and southern Philippines since Sunday. (ILKHA)