Old video of flooded Manila airport falsely linked to deadly September storm

Published on September 5, 2024 at 07:13
2 min read
By Lucille SODIPE, AFP Philippines

Months-old footage of a flooded plane at the Philippines' largest airport has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times in posts that falsely portrayed it as the aftermath of deadly Tropical Storm Yagi in September. The storm dumped heavy rains in parts of the archipelago but the video actually shows flooding at the airport in July.

The 19-second clip -- which shows floodwaters surrounding a parked airplane -- was posted on Facebook on September 3, 2024.

The post claimed the video was filmed the day before, adding: "Storm Enteng. NAIA Flood everywhere."

"NAIA" refers to Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport, while "Enteng" is the local name for Tropical Storm Yagi, which barrelled through the archipelago from September 1 to 4.

Twelve people were killed in the storm, according to government records, with heavy rains triggering flooding and landslides (archived link).

Screenshot of the false post taken on September 4, 2024

The video was viewed more than 300,000 times in similar Facebook posts here and here.

But it does not show NAIA on September 2, as the posts claimed.

Misrepresented clip

A reverse image search of a frame in the video found it in a short clip posted by The Manila Times newspaper on July 24 -- months before Yagi hit the Philippines (archived link).

"Parts of NAIA flooded due to heavy rain," The Manila Times's YouTube video said.

"Heavy rain caused by the typhoon-enhanced southwest monsoon floods Terminal 4 and the General Aviation Area of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on July 24, 2024."

The location of the video corresponds to Google Maps imagery of NAIA's Terminal 4.

Streets turned into rivers when Typhoon Gaemi swept past the Philippines on its way to Taiwan on July 24, and intensified the seasonal monsoon (archived link).

Government offices were shut and classes suspended, with more than 100 domestic and international flights cancelled.

A state of calamity was declared for Manila, unlocking funds for relief efforts, after serious flooding in some areas.

Below is a screenshot comparison of the video in the false posts (left) and the clip shared by The Manila Times (right):

Screenshot comparison of the video in the misleading posts (left) and the clip shared by The Manila Times (right)

A representative for NAIA's operator, the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) said Tropical Storm Yagi did not cause any flooding around Terminal 4, as the posts suggested.

"Our Terminal Operations have confirmed that there was no reported flooding around NAIA Terminal 4 during Typhoon Enteng," the spokesperson told AFP on September 4.

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