Philippines flooding displaces thousands as new storm threatens
At least six people have died and another six remain missing after Tropical Storm Wipha skirted the country on Friday, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.
Many neighbourhoods in Manila woke to find calf-deep pools of floodwater Tuesday after an overnight downpour swelled the Marikina River.
More than 23,000 people living along the riverbank were evacuated from their homes overnight and moved to schools, village halls and covered courtyards.
About 47,000 more were evacuated from across the capital's Quezon, Pasig and Caloocan areas, as well as from the main government district.
"Usually, these people are from low-lying areas like beside creeks," said Wilmer Tan of the Marikina rescue office, who said the river had reached 18 metres (59 feet) in height.
An elderly woman and her driver were swept down one of the swollen creeks as they attempted to cross a bridge in Caloocan, said John Paul Nietes, an emergency worker.
It was initially hoped that the pair had escaped after the car was recovered with a broken window.
But Caloocan Mayor Dale Gonzalo Malapitan announced one of the bodies had been found.
"We've found (the driver)," he told Manila radio station DZMM.
"The body was recovered 4.5 kilometres from where the vehicle was swept away.... They were unable to bail out."
- No respite -
As floodwaters began receding in Manila by Tuesday afternoon, the national weather service said a low-pressure area off the country's east coast had developed into a tropical depression.
While not expected to make landfall, the depression would bring continued heavy rain through the end of the week, the agency said.
Thousands of people, meanwhile, remained unable to return to their homes.
AFP journalists in Cainta, a small town on the outskirts of the capital, saw residents using styrofoam boxes and abandoned refrigerators as makeshift floatation devices to navigate the floodwaters.
Angelo Dela Cruz, 18, employed a rubber boat -- one purchased in anticipation of frequent flooding -- to transport rice for his aunt's small eatery.
AFP | Ted ALJIBE
"Instead of using the van, we have to use the boat and push it while we wade through the flood to prevent the rice from getting wet," he said.
At least 20 storms or typhoons strike or come near the Philippines each year, with the country's poorest regions typically the hardest hit.
Deadly and destructive storms are becoming more powerful as the world gets warmer because of climate change.
"This is hard, because if the rain will continue... the river will swell," Manila street sweeper Avelina Lumangtad, 61, told AFP as she stood next to a flooded thoroughfare.
"The floods are dangerous."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
eNCA
2 days ago
- eNCA
Philippines flooding displaces thousands as new storm threatens
Heavy flooding inundated the Philippines' capital on Tuesday, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee and schools and government offices to shut, while a fresh storm brewed off the coast. At least six people have died and another six remain missing after Tropical Storm Wipha skirted the country on Friday, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. Many neighbourhoods in Manila woke to find calf-deep pools of floodwater Tuesday after an overnight downpour swelled the Marikina River. More than 23,000 people living along the riverbank were evacuated from their homes overnight and moved to schools, village halls and covered courtyards. About 47,000 more were evacuated from across the capital's Quezon, Pasig and Caloocan areas, as well as from the main government district. "Usually, these people are from low-lying areas like beside creeks," said Wilmer Tan of the Marikina rescue office, who said the river had reached 18 metres (59 feet) in height. An elderly woman and her driver were swept down one of the swollen creeks as they attempted to cross a bridge in Caloocan, said John Paul Nietes, an emergency worker. It was initially hoped that the pair had escaped after the car was recovered with a broken window. But Caloocan Mayor Dale Gonzalo Malapitan announced one of the bodies had been found. "We've found (the driver)," he told Manila radio station DZMM. "The body was recovered 4.5 kilometres from where the vehicle was swept away.... They were unable to bail out." - No respite - As floodwaters began receding in Manila by Tuesday afternoon, the national weather service said a low-pressure area off the country's east coast had developed into a tropical depression. While not expected to make landfall, the depression would bring continued heavy rain through the end of the week, the agency said. Thousands of people, meanwhile, remained unable to return to their homes. AFP journalists in Cainta, a small town on the outskirts of the capital, saw residents using styrofoam boxes and abandoned refrigerators as makeshift floatation devices to navigate the floodwaters. Angelo Dela Cruz, 18, employed a rubber boat -- one purchased in anticipation of frequent flooding -- to transport rice for his aunt's small eatery. AFP | Ted ALJIBE "Instead of using the van, we have to use the boat and push it while we wade through the flood to prevent the rice from getting wet," he said. At least 20 storms or typhoons strike or come near the Philippines each year, with the country's poorest regions typically the hardest hit. Deadly and destructive storms are becoming more powerful as the world gets warmer because of climate change. "This is hard, because if the rain will continue... the river will swell," Manila street sweeper Avelina Lumangtad, 61, told AFP as she stood next to a flooded thoroughfare. "The floods are dangerous."
TimesLIVE
5 days ago
- TimesLIVE
Rains from Typhoon Wipha batter Hong Kong as it heads for mainland China
Rain pounded Hong Kong on Sunday as Typhoon Wipha skirted southwards, packing winds exceeding 167km/h, disrupting 400 flights and public transport, felling hundreds of trees, and damaging a construction site. Just after 4pm on Sunday, weather authorities lowered the typhoon signal in the Asian financial hub to 8 from the maximum of 10, which had been hoisted for nearly seven hours, while more than 110mm of rain fell within three hours. Much of the rain concentrated on the northern region neighbouring the mainland, the city's observatory said, warning of more to come. In a statement, the government said 26 people sought treatment in public hospitals, while 253 flocked to its shelters, and 471 fallen trees were reported. In North Point near the city's harbour, large swathes of scaffolding were swept off a residential building and onto the road. As Wipha tracks westward across the South China Sea it is expected to make landfall later on Sunday between Zhuhai and Zhanjiang in the southern province of Guangdong, state-run broadcaster CCTV said. Authorities in neighbouring Macau, the world's biggest gambling hub, also downgraded the typhoon signal to 8 from 10, warning of flooding in its inner harbour area and urging residents to stay safe, public broadcaster TDM said. Hong Kong's airport authority said 80,000 travellers were hit by the rescheduling of 400 flights forced by the typhoon. Cathay Pacific Airways cancelled all flights with Hong Kong airport between 5am and 6pm on Sunday. It waived ticket change fees and arranged for rebooking. Most public transport in Hong Kong was suspended, including ferries amid high sea swells.
eNCA
16-07-2025
- eNCA
German Wellbrock wins world 10km swim after water quality delay
Germany's Florian Wellbrock won the men's open water 10km at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore on Wednesday, after the race had been postponed for several hours because of poor water quality. Wellbrock, the gold medallist at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, won his third open water world title in a time of 1hr 59min 55.50sec at the Sentosa Island course when the race eventually began at 1:00 pm. Italy's Gregorio Paltrinieri took silver 3.70sec adrift, followed by Australia's Kyle Lee in bronze. "It was really tough today. I think it was the warmest waters that we've had to race in," said Wellbrock of the sea temperature, which was around 30 degrees Celsius. "I had one year to prepare for this. We did a lot of heat training and I think that was the key today to me taking the gold." Governing body World Aquatics delayed the race because water quality was "exceeding acceptable thresholds". The women's 10km race had already been postponed on Tuesday and moved to Wednesday. When it did finally get under way at 4:00 pm, Moesha Johnson added world championship gold to the silver medal she won at the Paris Olympics last year. The Australian came home first in 2hr 7min 51.30sec, finishing ahead again of Paris Olympics bronze medallist Ginevra Taddeucci of Italy (2:07:59.70). Lisa Pou of Monaco (2:07:57.50), who was 18th in the Paris Olympics last summer, came in third for a surprise bronze medal. World Aquatics said early Wednesday morning that the new afternoon time slots for the races were "subject to acceptable test results". But soon after, they confirmed both races would proceed in the afternoon as further analysis had found "significant improvement" in bacterial content and water temperature. "Regular water quality monitoring and testing continues throughout the competition period to ensure athlete safety," World Aquatics said in a statement. AFP | Manan VATSYAYANA "The health and safety of all participants continues to guide all competition-related decisions." The governing body said levels of E. coli bacteria had dropped to between the ranges of "good" and "excellent", according to World Aquatics and World Health Organization regulations. Water quality was a big problem for events held in the River Seine at last year's Paris Olympics. Of the 11 days of events and training scheduled in its murky waters, only five got the green light. The river remained dogged by pollution problems despite a 1.4 billion euros ($1.5 billion) upgrade to improve the Paris sewerage and water treatment system.
