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WORLD> Asia-Pacific
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Philippines braces for new storm as toll hits 246
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-09-30 01:44 In the Philippines, authorities released water from two dams north of Manila, but stressed it was being done carefully to prevent any recurrence of floods. "Angat opened their gates slowly just to keep it at spilling level and the effect would be minimal," Teodoro said, adding the another dam in Nueva Ecija province also opened its gates to release water.
Private citizens and volunteer groups were collecting relief goods -- mostly clothes, drinking water and medicines -- and distributing them to victims. Many people have thrown open their homes to those who were forced to abandon theirs. Several foreign governments and UN agencies have already pledged nearly $2 million in rice and relief supplies, Teodoro told reporters, adding he met lawmakers from both houses of Congress to seek emergency funds for rehabilitation work. US soldiers deployed in the south of the country have been brought to Manila to help in relief, while the United Nations has announced it will give food aid and cash for medical supplies. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has called the typhoon "an extreme event that has strained our response capabilities to the limit." "But it is not breaking us," she said in a statement on Monday, after opening the presidential palace for relief efforts. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime typhoon." Schools in the capital region and nearby provinces will remain closed for the third day on Wednesday because about 170 campuses are being used as shelter areas for more than 10,000 families. About 60 schools were also damaged by the floods.
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