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Manila, Philippines - Floods due to non-stop rains still affect parts of the Caraga region in Mindanao, as another low pressure area threatens other areas of Mindanao with flash floods and landslides.

Science and Technology Undersecretary Graciano Yumul, OIC of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), said that rain bands are still affecting parts of northeast Mindanao, Bohol, northern Cebu, and the southern parts of Leyte and Samar.

The rain bands are still expected to bring moderate to heavy rains in the area, with the weather station in Hinatuan, Surigao del Norte, recording more than 180 mm of rain in 24 hours, Yumul said.

Meanwhile, Yumul said the low pressure area east of General Santos City is predicted to proceed to the Palawan area, instead of going towards Southern Luzon or the National Capital Region.

He said numerical models indicated the LPA will be in the northern part of the island by Thursday, and will go out of the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) by Friday.

He said numerical models indicated the LPA will be in the northern part of the island by Thursday, and will go out of the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) by Friday.

He added that except for Palawan, the whole country will experience good weather on Thursday, but he cautioned that the Caraga and parts of Eastern Visayas will still have potential for flooding due to the after effects of the heavy rains.

"Except for Palawan, from Thursday to Saturday, the weather in the Philippines will be generally clear," he said during a press briefing in Malacañang.

"We expect that things will be better for Visayas and Mindanao. But that doesn't mean the problem of Caraga will actually be finished, for the simple reasion that rainfall that fell on the watershed of Caraga is just begining to go down, so recession of flooding is not expected in immediate future," he said.

"We expect we really have to monitor the flooding and landslide situation in Caraga," he added.

The LPA, meanwhile, is expected to get stronger, as it passes over the Celebes and Sulu Seas on its way to Palawan.

Evacuations, relief goods

Nearly 300,000 families, or some 1.4 million individuals, have been affected by floods and landslides brought about by continuous rains in the country since December last year.

Social Welfare and Development Secretary Dinky Soliman said government and non-government organizations have spent more than P35 million in aid.

"We continue to have prepositioned items and funds," she said during a press briefing in Malacañang on Wednesday.

Soliman added, many affected provinces have asked assistance from the national government.

She also said that the DSWD is preparing additional supplies for the Caraga region, as the national weather bureau Pagasa said Wednesday that they are expecting more rains in the area.

"We are preparing already for augmentation in Caraga. We will be adding P3 million to download within the next two days because we expect, as Pagasa told us, continuous rains, and the PDRRMC [Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council] of 4 provinces have indicated they would need augmentation from us," she said.

With reports from ANC, ABS-CBN News Northern Mindanao.