Monsoon rains flood Philippines as thousands evacuated

 

A man was spotted walking through a dirty flood just to get home

Monsoon rains flood Philippines as thousands evacuated

Thousands flee Manila after days of torrential rain

By Edward Era Barbacena

Thousands of residents have fled flooded communities and swollen rivers in the Philippine capital, Manila, and outlying provinces after days of torrential monsoon rains that left at least one villager dead.

Philippine authorities evacuated thousands of people to safety as heavy rains and flooding caused by the southwest monsoon killed at least one person.

Officials say they are struggling to open more emergency shelters in order to allow social distancing among the displaced residents and prevent evacuation camps from turning into epicentres of Covid-19 infections. In the hard-hit city of Marikina in the capital region, nearly 15,000 residents were evacuated to safety overnight as waters rose alarmingly in a major river.

More than 87,000 people were affected by the monsoon rains, which were enhanced by Typhoon In-Fa even after it left the Philippines, according to the national disaster agency. At least 22,000 individuals are in evacuation centres, it said.

A 39-year-old woman in Baguio City, north of Manila, died from a vehicular accident caused by a fallen tree, the agency said. Authorities are verifying at least two more reported deaths.

Marikina mayor, Marcelino Teodoro, told local media.

Teodoro blamed years of illegal logging in nearby mountains and heavy siltation in the Marikina River for constant flooding in his city.

In the mountainous northern city of Baguio, a resident died on Friday afternoon after the taxi she was riding in was hit by a falling tree, police said. The northern Philippines has been swamped by days of monsoon rains that flooded low-lying villages and set off minor landslides.

Weather disruptions are also complicating coronavirus containment efforts and vaccination drives. Health officials have asked people to continue to mask up and observe safe distancing measures amid the flooding and evacuations.

An average of 20 typhoons pass through the Philippines each year. Between 2000 and 2016, natural disasters cost the Philippines $20 billion in damage or an average of $1.2 billion annually, according to an Asian Development Bank Institute paper.