Manila is underwater right now!

[andrew&evelyn 6]

In case anyone hasnt heard. Last night about 15.4 inches of rain fell in 6 hours. Water is waist high right now. If you have GMA its all over on their news. There are a few pictures on yahoo of the flood.

Edited September 26, 2009 by andrew&evelyn

[sunandmoon 450]

40 dead after flooding in northern Philippines

AP

By OLIVER TEVES, Associated Press Writer Oliver Teves, Associated Press Writer – 2 hrs 53 mins ago

MANILA, Philippines – More than a month's worth of rain fell in just 12 hours Saturday as Tropical Storm Ketsana slammed ashore in the Philippines, killing at least 40 people and stranding thousands on rooftops in the capital's worst flooding in more than 42 years.

The government declared a "state of calamity" in metropolitan Manila and 25 storm-hit provinces, said Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, who heads the National Disaster Coordinating Council. That allows officials to withdraw emergency money for relief and rescue.

A landslide and flash flooding in nearby Rizal province killed 35 people, said provincial government spokesman Tony Mateo. Most of the fatalities in Rizal drowned, said Loel Malonzo, chairman of the Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council.

Three people were also reported killed in Manila's southern suburb of Muntinglupa and two others in Quezon city, said Anthony Golez, deputy presidential spokesman and acting head of the Office of Civil Defense.

Malonzo said that those who died did not live near creeks and were unaccustomed to flooding. "It has been about 40 years since something like this has happened here and many who migrated to the province were unfamiliar with the flooding," Malonzo said.

Mateo said that 27 people were missing.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo had to take an elevated commuter train to the disaster council office to preside over a meeting because roads were clogged by vehicles stuck in the floodwaters.

The mayor of Cainta, also in Rizal, who was stranded atop a dump truck on a road that was neck-deep in water, told ABS-CBN television by phone that many residents climbed onto roofs to escape.

"The whole town is almost 100 percent underwater," Mayor Mon Ilagan said.

About 16.7 inches (42.4 centimeters) of rain fell on metropolitan Manila in just 12 hours on Saturday, exceeding the 15.4-inch (39.2-centimeter) average for September, said chief government weather forecaster Nathaniel Cruz. The rainfall on Saturday also broke the previous record of 13.2 inches (33.4 centimeters), which fell during a 24-hour period in June 1967, he said.

"However good your drainage system is, it will be overwhelmed by that amount of rainfall," he told The Associated Press.

He said poor maintenance of drains and waterways clogged with garbage compounded the problem.

ABS-CBN television showed a dramatic video of more than a dozen people perched on roofs of damaged houses being swept away by the suburban Marikina River. They smashed against the pillars of a bridge and were separated from each other in the rampaging river. It was unclear whether they were rescued.

Cruz said seasonal monsoon rains were intensified by Ketsana, which packed winds of 53 mph (85 kph) with gusts of up to 63 mph (100 kph) when it hit land early Saturday. By the evening, the storm maintained its strength as it moved over the coast of western Zambales province and headed west toward the South China Sea.

Stranded residents called radio and television stations for help.

Popular actress Cristine Reyes tearfully appealed on ABS-CBN television from the roof of her two-story home, saying she and her mother and two young children had been waiting there for rescue for over six hours.

"If the rains do not stop, the water will reach the roof. We do not know what to do. My mother doesn't know how to swim," she said.

Manila airport operations chief Octavio Lina said the runway had been flooded, delaying international flights for hours. Floodwaters also caused some electrical outages.

Hundreds of vehicles were stalled in flooded streets around the capital, and nearly 2,000 passengers were stranded in ports in several provinces south of Manila after the coast guard suspended ferry operations.

The rains also caused the water in two dams near Manila to overflow, the national disaster agency said. It said water was waist-deep in some communities in northern Bulacan province near one dam.

Power distributor Meralco cut off electric service to some flooded areas in metropolitan Manila to prevent accidents, spokesman Joel Zaldarriaga said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/as_philippines_flooding

[Otto 83]

Thats a lot of water in such a short time..

[Loolie 56]

In case anyone hasnt heard. Last night about 15.4 inches of rain fell in 6 hours. Water is waist high right now. If you have GMA its all over on their news. There are a few pictures on yahoo of the flood.

i wonder what kind of diseases are they gonna get from the flood since manila is a very dirty place.

[jsnearline 2]

My wife's family lost their home in the flooding (their house collapsed) and one of her sisters is missing.

[Mem n Chris 0]

My wife's family lost their home in the flooding (their house collapsed) and one of her sisters is missing.

that's very very sad news I got when I woke up this morning. My parent's house is on flood until to the second floor!

Let's pray for our families back home!

[-B&T- 1]

My wife's family lost their home in the flooding (their house collapsed) and one of her sisters is missing.

I hope your sister-in law is fine wherever she's at right now. I have relatives in Pasay City also and really worried about them. Flooding is not unusual in Metro Manila even with little rain streets would be flooded but not like this one, its terrible!

[jsnearline 2]

My wife was watching the news and they were saying this is the worst flooding in Manila since 1967. I know Manila is used to storms and floods, but this one seems extreme even by Philippines standards.

[JoBri 548]

My wife had to return to Manila (Quezon City) 2 weeks ago because her brother is dying. She is due to return October 1, in 4 days. I tried calling her, but it doesnt even go through. I dont know anything of her situation, how she is, where she is at... nothing... because cant get through on phone.

Her birth town is Tanay, Rizal, where her sick brother is at. She has been there quite a bit on this trip, but I saw news accounts many were swept away there in flash floods.

I am very worried

Brian in Virginia

[Gumbolette 58]

See how much we have been abusing God's gifs to us? The flood that struck Metro Manila and other parts of the National Capital Region was indeed a result of how much we have been unmindful for the effects of us-- not caring for the proper disposal of garbage, rich people converting every available spaces to subdivisions, and the list goes on and on... We don't have proper drainage anymore. Bodies of water around the metro are now Malls. So where else the water will go? Moreover, because of the global warming, Philippine's sea level is really plunging rapidly as the years passes by.

What will the Filipinos should do if a much stronger typhoon comes a long the way? This really calls for voting wisely this coming Presidential election and hopefully the next president would actually care to do something in terms of defense for natural calamity.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

See how much we have been abusing God's gifs to us? The flood that struck Metro Manila and other parts of the National Capital Region was indeed a result of how much we have been unmindful for the effects of us-- not caring for the proper disposal of garbage, rich people converting every available spaces to subdivisions, and the list goes on and on... We don't have proper drainage anymore. Bodies of water around the metro are now Malls. So where else the water will go? Moreover, because of the global warming, Philippine's sea level is really plunging rapidly as the years passes by.

What will the Filipinos should do if a much stronger typhoon comes a long the way? This really calls for voting wisely this coming Presidential election and hopefully the next president would actually care to do something in terms of defense for natural calamity.

Well said. One thing I did notice along Roxas Blvd, and other areas, that squatters have moved into many of the flood control areas. There is just too many people in too small an area. And like you said, garbage is just dumped into the storm drains and into the flood channels. Even without such a large storm, it it easy to see why Manila has such problems with flooding.

That does not prevent us, however, from keeping the victims of this tragedy in our prayers, and thoughts.

[robbie jeannet 5]

sad to see things like that happen, but we go through the same stuff here in louisiana. we are still recovering from the last huricane we had . the question i have , was the U.S. Embassy in manila hit bad or is it on high ground, and what kind of delays can we all expect???

[-Cinnamon- 0]

WEEEEEEEEE!

Praise the Lord Jesus Christ.

Haring Araw is back, wetweeeew!

[marklovetina 52]

WEEEEEEEEE!

Praise the Lord Jesus Christ.

Haring Araw is back, wetweeeew!

:thumbs: yehey!!!

[jsnearline 2]

My wife can sleep tonight. All her family members are now accounted for.