After admitting they have been overwhelmed by the worst flooding seen in the country in decades, government officials in the Philippines have appealed for urgent international aid.

The widespread flooding triggered by torrential rains in the capital Manila killed at least 240 people.

As clean up efforts begin that death toll is expected to rise further, although on Monday forecasters warned another major storm could hit the country in the next two days.

Tropical storm Ketsana, which hit the capital on Saturday with the heaviest rainfall seen in more than 40 years, triggered the floods.

The nine-hour downpour left some areas of metropolitan Manila, a sprawling city of 12 million people, under six meters of water.

The government said on Monday that emergency services were struggling to cope with more than 435,000 people displaced and large areas still submerged. Officials also for the delays in rescue efforts.

Anthony Golez, the deputy administrator of the National Disaster Coordinating Council, said, “We are concentrating on massive relief operations. [But] the system is overwhelmed, local government units are overwhelmed.”

(via Al Jazeera)