MANILA: Floodwaters driven by torrential rains ground life in the Philippine capital to a halt on Tuesday (Jul 22) with tens of thousands evacuated from their homes and at least two people believed missing.
Schools and government offices in Manila and the surrounding provinces were closed after a night of rain that saw the region’s Marikina River burst its banks.
More than 23,000 people living along the river were evacuated overnight, sheltering in schools, village halls and covered courtyards.
Another 25,000 more were evacuated in the metropolitan area’s Quezon and Caloocan cities.
“Usually these people are from low-lying areas like beside creeks (feeding into the river),” according to Wilmer Tan of the Marikina rescue office, who said the river had reached 18m in height.
An elderly woman and her driver were swept down a swollen creek as they attempted to cross a bridge in Caloocan, said John Paul Nietes, an emergency operations centre assistant supervisor.
“Their car was recovered last night. The rescue operation is continuing, but as of today, they haven’t found either of them,” he said.
“The car window was broken, so the hope is that they were able to escape.”
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