Residents battled through a raging river today after a bridge collapsed during floods in the Philippines that have killed at least 40 people so far this year.

The wooden walkway was swept away by the torrents caused by heavy rain in Davao Oriental in the Davao region of Mindanao in the south of the country.

Locals had to risk their life by wading through the fast-flowing water to reach neighbouring homes.

It came as THE Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said on Friday that the number of people reported dead from the effects of the low-pressure area, shear line, and northeast monsoon that battered the country since January 2 has climbed to 40.

The amount of damage to agriculture and infrastructure was estimated at PHP885.16 million and PHP520.05 million, respectively, while the number of damaged houses was placed at 1,858.