The annual monsoon season is dreaded in Manila. Over the weekend, Metro Manila has received almost the same amount of rain as notorious Typhoon ‘Ondoy’ poured out in 2009.
Thousands of residents have been displaced as rains are expected to continue until Wednesday according to weather bureau PAG-ASA.
Social media is filled with photos and videos of flooded areas, which used to be busy roads, streets, and even homes.
In Quezon City, a grieving family had to put the casket on top of styrofoam to keep it afloat in the rising water. As seen in photos courtesy of Barangay Mariblo SK chairman Isagani Pangantijon Jr., the flood has reached the net of a make-shift basketball ring.
In Bulacan, a province just an hour away from the capital, a couple pushed through with their wedding ceremony despite the flooded Santo Rosario Church. The video, taken by Bautista Bañarez Tere (aunt of the bride), shows the bride wading through the calf-deep murky waters in her wedding gown towards her waiting husband-to-be. The now-viral videos has been shared thousands of times through Facebook.
In Marikina, a city known for its horrid flooding conditions during the rainy season because of Marikina River, Facebook user Jaysus Reyes posted a photo of a mall area in the city, which has turned into a pool of brown water swallowing cars. The white and black images you see are actually roofs of vehicles.
In Manila, the rains continue to lash on Sunday morning as seen in this video by another Facebook user Kai Talavera.
The high winds and heavy rains created huge waves in Manila Bay, which brought garbage and flood through Roxas Boulevard, one of the main thoroughfares in the capital city. The video below by Matthew Doming shows “waste fighters” trying to contain the deluge of waste from the angry bay.
In the coastal city of Navotas, overflowing waterways also brought garbage to its residential areas.
On Saturday night, hundreds of commuters were stranded due to flooded streets. Cleon Lester Chavez tweets, “All but one lane of Marcos Highway East and West are occupied by stranded vehicles heading east. The eastbound lane remains impassable due to flooding. People are being ferried across the flooded area by two heavy trucks.”
ATM: All but one lane of Marcos Highway East and West are occupied by stranded vehicles heading east. The eastbound lane remains impassable due to flooding. People are being ferried across the flooded area by two heavy trucks. pic.twitter.com/C3kx2Suwyi
— Cleon Lester Chavez (@cleonlester) August 11, 2018
With devastating floods year after year, the Philippine capital is yet to see the end of flooding especially in areas near rivers and dams.
