Manila  - Nine people were dead or missing in the Philippines from landslides and floods caused by a tropical depression, the Office of Civil Defence said Thursday.

Six people were confirmed killed in the heavy rains spawned by the tropical depression, which blew away from the Philippines overnight.

Four of the confirmed fatalities were children, aged 2 to 7, who either drowned in floods or were buried in landslides, the office said.

A 59-year-old woman also drowned in floods in Pampanga province, 75 kilometres north of Manila, while a 19-year-old mother drowned when her shanty collapsed into a swollen creek in Quezon City in suburban Manila.

The office said three security guards at a mining site in Botolan town in the northern province of Zambales were missing and feared dead after they were buried in a landslide.

The tropical depression worsened heavy monsoon rains that have been affecting the central and northern Philippines since last week, affecting more than 300,000 people. (dpa)