Monsoon rains triggered flooding Saturday in the Philippine capital and surrounding areas, killing 12 people, sending thousands to safer ground and disrupting domestic air services.
The Manila weather bureau said typhoon Abe, which hammered Taiwan and was railing at China, and a low-pressure area in the Pacific Ocean together pushed the rain-laden monsoon over the Philippine island of Luzon.Police and relief officials said six people drowned in suburban Quezon City, two in neighboring San Juan town, two in Bocaue and two in Manila.
The military Office of Civil Defense and the Social Welfare Department said 68,000 people were evacuated in the capital at the height of the flood.
OCD said typhoon-related landslides earlier in the week in the provinces of Benguet, Nueva Viscaya and Nueva Ecija north of Manila left 32 people dead. The Red Cross toll was 85 dead.
It was the second time in eight days that severe flooding hit Luzon. On Aug. 24, floods raged through the capital, killing 13 people.
Wide areas of the capital were flooded Saturday, prompting Philippine Airlines to suspend domestic air services in the afternoon. International flights remained normal. Schools were ordered closed.
The U.S.-run Far East television network also reported severe flooding at the American air base at Clark Field, where more than 8 inches of rainfall was recorded.
Bulacan province Gov. Roberto Pagdanganan said the towns of Bocaue, Malolos and Calumpit were under water. In some areas water was "neck deep." He said 25 houses were destroyed in Bocaue, sending 120 people to evacuation centers.
Bocaue Mayor Lorenzo Gonzales said hundreds more were marooned in rice fields or on rooftops. He pleaded with authorities in Manila to send amphibian tanks to rescue them.