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Submitted by amore on Tue, 09/29/2009 - 7:31pm
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Manila braces for new storm as flood toll rises

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Submitted by amore on Wed, 09/30/2009 - 1:43pm.

By Barbara Mae Dacanay, Bureau Chief

Manila: President Gloria Arroyo has ordered government officials to enforce the evacuation of illegal settlers in Metro Manila in preparation for the arrival of another typhoon, even as the toll from floods in the northern Philippines rose to at least 284 dead or missing.

Arroyo's order targeted poor people who continue residing in off-limits zones such as riverbanks, under bridges, and on soft dumpsites. Metro Manila's illegal squatters have been blamed for clogging waterways and the drainage system with garbage.

In pictures: Massive flooding hits Philippines

Two new typhoons were brewing in the Pacific and threatened to complicate relief efforts in the Philippines, officials said.

"A second cyclone is threatening the eastern Philippines but it's difficult to predict damage it might cause," Met official Geoffrey Love said.

"This storm could reach the east of the archipelago in the next two or three days and its intensity could increase during that time."

Watch video of the floods in Manila

Arroyo's administration - sensitive to criticism it did not give sufficient warning of the deluge or was too slow to respond - conceded it was overwhelmed but said it was doing all it could to help. Officials appealed for international aid, warning they may not have enough resources to withstand two new storms.

Angry flood survivors queued for food while another line built for a single toilet at a gymnasium that was turned into an evacuation centre. The death toll could rise further, said the National Disaster Coordinating Council, adding that more evacuation centres would be established.

The storm Ketsana, which struck Manila and surrounding provinces on Saturday, gathered strength across the South China Sea, and claimed at least 32 lives as it made landfall in central Vietnam , where 170,000 people were evacuated from its path.

With additional inputs from agencies

Kasabihan:
Bicol my version : Daeng nagmina sa kinaban na daing pig-agihan ning kalamidad.
Tagalog: Walang humipo sa uling na walang naulingan.