Waves of rubbish crash into Manila after monsoon washes city garbage into sea

Footage shows tonnes of trash being swept back into coast-side streets

Massive waves of rubbish have been filmed crashing into the shore of Manila in the Philippines after a storm burst the city’s rivers and washed several tonnes of dumped litter into the sea.

Footage posted on social media shows residents and city workers struggling against a tide of debris made up of plastic, foam, clothing, deadwood and domestic waste.

Trash can be seen completely carpeting the water as officials and volunteers attempt – fruitlessly – to clear it from the bay.

Other clips show streams of garbage washed up in the capital city’s roads and side streets, following a seasonal monsoon.

"It was such a horrible scene,” said Matthew Doming, who shot some of the footage as his university club, the Bedan Environmental Philosophers Organisation, took part in the clean-up effort.

He told Storyful: “Instead of being dismayed, they [volunteers] were motivated to serve…despite the discomfort."

In a statement posted with the video, Mr Doming, who attends the city’s San Beda University, added: “We're aware that we can't clean the entire Manila Bay in just one day and it may take years of countless effort. This also applies with other clean-up activities nationwide. Not everything happens in an instant.

"It takes time, dedication, and commitment to accomplish a goal as big as this."

It may also take the help of coordinated government action: the Philippines is the third biggest source of plastic ocean pollution in the world, according to a 2017 report by Greenpeace, while it’s capital's streets are infamous for their piles of garbage.