Residents fled as torrential flash floods swept into their homes in the Philippines.

The locals scrambled to save what they could of their belongings as torrential currents flooded their houses in Tamapakan town, South Cotabato province on July 16.

Authorities said the two bridges were closed to traffic due to heavy floods, adding the extent of the damage is still being investigated.

The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) said some 200 families were evacuated in the town over the weekend.

PDRRMO acting head Rolly Doane Aquino said: 'We have one drowning incident in Barangay Lampitak. The local disaster team of Tampakan has also recorded landslides in the mountainous Barangay of Palo 19.'

The Philippines and other countries in Southeast Asia such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand are in the middle of their tropical monsoon rainy season, which lasts until October or November.

Soaring temperatures reaching 35 degrees Celsius are often followed by powerful tropical storms with thunder, lightning, rain and flash floods.