The decisive moment came after eight hours of prayer at St Joseph's Convent of Perpetual Adoration in Quezon City, the former capital of the Philippines.

ECONOMIST: Corazon Aquino

Manila, capital of the Philippines, is doing the same.

ECONOMIST: The threat grows from rising water and sinking buildings

However, a recent study of coastal cities still predicted the Philippines' capital Manila would see its vulnerability to flooding double by the end of the century, due to sea-level rises.

CNN: New satellite data reveals sea-level rise