**Rescue teams are stepping up efforts to reach flood victims in the Philippines, where at least 72 people are feared to have died following torrential rains.**Tropical Storm Ketsana set-off the worst flooding in decades in the capital Manila and nearby provinces.
Defence Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said troops, police and civilian volunteers had rescued more than 4,000 people - many clinging to each other on roofs.
More than 250,000 have been driven from their homes, officials say.
Correspondents say the massive rescue was set to intensify as the weather began to clear and floodwaters began to recede on Sunday.
The government has declared a “calamity” in Manila and 25 provinces, allowing access to emergency funds.
Appeal for calm
The equivalent of a whole month’s rain fell in six hours as Ketsana, also known as Ondoy, lashed the island of Luzon.
On Saturday, television pictures showed water flowing down roads like rivers, with the floods chest-deep and rising.
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Philippines President Gloria Arroyo appealed for donations and called for calm.
“I am calling on our countrymen, especially residents of metro Manila and other provinces in the path of the typhoon, to please stay calm, follow the instructions of local officials and civil defence authorities,” she said in a TV message on Saturday.
Also on Saturday, Mayor Mon Ilagan of the town of Cainta, in Rizal province to the north, told local media his town was “almost 100% under water”.
Rizal Governor Casimiro Ynares was quoted by local media as saying other towns were completely inundated.
Roads leading into Manila were rendered impassable by stalled vehicles, and some ferry services were cancelled.
Thousands of passengers were stranded as international and domestic airports were shut down.
Ketsana, with winds of up to 100 km/h, is expected to head out over the South China Sea on Sunday and Monday.
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