MANILA — Two people were killed in Northern Samar due to floods and torrential rains, a disaster management official said Thursday.

According to Josh Echano, head of Northern Samar Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, a resident died in Laoang while a soldier was swept away by floodwaters in San Isidro.

The military personnel was identified as Corporal Jerry Palacio of the 43rd Infantry Battalion.

• Sundalo nasawi matapos tangayin ng tubig sa Northern Samar

Four towns in the province were also severely affected by flooding, he added. These are Catarman, Catubig, Las Navas and Lope de Vega.

Meanwhile, some 18,239 individuals or 4,561 families are staying in evacuation centers.

The provincial government is still conducting a rapid assessment to determine the number of damaged houses and losses to agriculture.

• Rainy weather in large parts of PH due to low pressure area

According to state weather bureau PAGASA, a low-pressure area and shear line are affecting parts of the Visayas and Mindanao.

The brewing storm was spotted 380 kilometers east of Surigao City, Surigao del Norte as of 3 a.m. Thursday.

At least 11 people have died in storms across the Philippines in the past week, with more heavy rain expected in already sodden regions of the disaster-prone country, authorities said Tuesday.

Bad weather has plagued the country's southern and central islands since the Christmas weekend when downpours triggered flooding and landslides that left 52 people dead and forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes.

Since January 3, back-to-back storms have killed 11 people as floodwaters swept through houses, cut roads and swamped crops, the civil defense office said.

Heavy rain has already inundated villages, with water levels reaching 3 meters or 10 feet in some places.

The Philippines is ranked among the most vulnerable nations to the impacts of climate change, and scientists have warned that storms are becoming more powerful as the world gets warmer.

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— With a report from Agence France-Presse