Rain, deadly floods force nearly 900,000 Filipinos from their homes
2024.07.24
Manila

At least eight people were killed in the Philippines on Wednesday after heavy rains brought on by a powerful typhoon caused massive flooding, authorities said.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said the rains and floodwaters, triggered by Typhoon Gaemi (Super Typhoon Carina) and an enhanced seasonal monsoon, also displaced over 880,000. About 35,000 people are being housed in evacuation centers.
“A total of 8 dead, 2 injured, and 1 missing persons were reported,” the council said in its report updated at 8 p.m. local time.
The storm made landfall along the east coast of Taiwan on Wednesday evening but did not hit the Philippines directly. Still, it intensified seasonal monsoon rains, leading to flooding and landslides in various parts of the country over the past few days.

“Metro Manila is now in a state of calamity,” Interior Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. announced during a briefing of the mayors from the region’s 16 cities and one town. Authorities closed schools and offices and canceled flights on Wednesday.
Around the capital city and its suburbs which are home to over 13 million people, floodwaters quickly rose, transforming streets in low-lying areas into virtual raging rivers and leaving thousands of people stranded in their homes.

Kim Irish Aligayda, 26, a factory merchandiser, was stranded with her family in their home in Montalban Heights, a hilly suburban area east of Manila.
She took mobile phone videos of the road outside their home where fast-moving water could be seen.
“When it rains, it’s normal for water to flow fast, but not like today,” Aligayda told BenarNews. “The volume was too much and it was scary. We are all marooned at home and can’t go out to buy necessary supplies from the neighborhood store.”
“We will wait it out,” she said.

Quezon City, home to almost 3 million people, reported nearly 22,000 evacuees from over 7,000 families. Mayor Joy Belmonte said 80 of its 142 villages were submerged in water.
“All our evacuation centers were filled. We have even used churches, covered courts, village halls and other places,” Belmonte said.
In Manila, all its six districts were heavily affected, with 2,500 families evacuated.
In Navotas, a coastal city frequently hit by floods, 80% of communities were affected, according to Mayor John Rey Tiangco.
Miguel Ponce III, mayor of Pateros town, said this was the first time in years that the area experienced massive flooding and destruction.

Following an emergency meeting on Wednesday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. vowed to release aid valued at 2.8 billion pesos (U.S. $47.9 million).
The Philippines is pummeled by more than 20 storms a year, with some of them deadly.
Tropical Storm Ketsana, which flooded parts of the capital Manila in 2009, resulted in about 660 deaths.
In November 2013, about 6,300 people died and scores were reported missing after Super Typhoon Haiyan struck the central Philippines and caused massive storm surges.
