27,000 displaced by floods in Philippines

More than 27,000 people in the Philippines capital Manila and in nearby suburbs and provinces have been displaced by floods due to heavy rains dumped by Typhoon Kaemi, officials said on Wednesday.

Two people were also reported missing after being swept away by flood waters in suburban Quezon city and Bulacan province north of Manila, the civil defence office said.

Those displaced were from three suburban areas in Manila and 14 towns outside of the capital, it said.

However, only 5,535 of the 27,523 people affected by the floods were being taken care of in evacuation centres, while the rest were with relatives or friends.

Various roads in and around Manila remained flooded and not passable to light vehicles on Wednesday after Kaemi dumped torrential rains over the past three days. Some areas are under 1.5 metres of water, it said.

The state weather bureau said that while Kaemi was no longer in Philippine territory it "will continue to bring occasional monsoon rains over the western section of Luzon."