After a quick assessment of the needs in Rizal province, an Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) medical team has started to provide medical care to people in an evacuation centre in the location of Montalban.

Yesterday, around 80 medical consultations were provided. The province of Rizal, southeast of Manila, is one of the areas that has been hardest-hit by the floods caused by tropical storm Ketsana last Saturday.

People, generally the poorest, who were living close to the river, have had their homes and belongings washed away in the floodwaters. People are in need of non-food items such as blankets, cooking pots, mattresses, jerry cans, and hygiene kits, which MSF is providing.

Other MSF teams assessed ten more locations in Rizal and Bulacan provinces to identify needs. The assessments are still ongoing, with particular attention given to locations where the response, so far, has been limited.

A team of 11 MSF international staff are on the ground for this emergency with more doctors and water and sanitation specialists on standby.